


Thinking Out Loud

by AlonelyDreamer



Category: Twilight (Movies), Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-30
Updated: 2018-07-06
Packaged: 2018-11-21 12:25:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 18
Words: 46,124
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11357469
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlonelyDreamer/pseuds/AlonelyDreamer
Summary: When Isabella and her little sister Evangeline moved to Forks they had no illusion they would like it. Isabella hated it and all Evangeline wanted was to be left alone. But when they both met Edward Cullen, everything changed. Finally, Evangeline had proof she wasn't crazy. He too could hear other people's thoughts. (Carlisle x OC / Bella x Edward)/!\ Will have mentions of depression and self-harm /!\





	1. Forks

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, hello, bonjour :)
> 
> One or two things you need to know before you start reading :D
> 
> First of all, I am French, so there might be some mistakes here and there ^^'
> 
> Second, this is my first Twilight FanFiction. It is a kind of a rewriting of the book with an OC. So, if you have read the books, you will see many similarities. Don't worry, it won't always be like this, I am just introducing my OC and the plot :)
> 
> In this story, Esme does exist but she isn't Carlisle's wife. The good people of Forks believe her to be his sister. I love her too much to write her off!
> 
> I hope you like it!
> 
> Feedback is always appreaciated so don't hesitate to leave a comment :D
> 
> Enjoy!

In the Olympics Peninsula of northwest Washington State, a small town named Forks exists under a near-constant cover of clouds. It rains on this inconsequential town more than any other place in the United States of America. It was from this town and its gloomy, omnipresent shade that Renée Swan escaped with her two daughters: Isabella and Evangeline when there were only fourteen and three months old. It was in this town that they had been compelled to spend every summer until Isabella was fourteen. That was the year she finally put her foot down. Evangeline didn't have her sister's temper and she would have gone to Forks with her father if he hadn't decided to vacation with both of them in California for two weeks instead. Evangeline would spend the rest of the summer at her father's house, away from her sister and mother, happy to be alone. Isabella was the responsible one, taking care of both her mother and sister. Renée was her best friend but Evangeline was a stranger to her. She was a stranger to anyone, even to her mother.

It was to Forks that they now exiled themselves – an action that Isabella took with great horror. She detested Forks but loved Phoenix. She loved the sun and the blistering heat. She loved the vigorous, sprawling city. Evangeline didn't care about the change. She never fitted anywhere but she was content to live with her quiet father, away from her eccentric mother. Of course, she loved Renée. And she loved Phil, her step-father. But she preferred the quiet of Forks over the busy Phoenix.

"Girls," Renée said to her daughters – the last of a thousand times – before they got on the plane. "You don't have to do this."

She knew her eldest daughter hated Forks. She was worried she would regret her decision. She had spent the last seventeen years with her children and that was a change she wouldn't get over easily.

"I want to go," she lied. She'd always been a bad liar, but she'd been saying this lie so frequently lately that it sounded almost convincing now.

"Will you be okay, my little angel?" Renée asked Evangeline, cupping her left cheek with her hand. The small, quiet girl looked up. She was wearing a black hoodie, like she always did, and had her hood pulled up, hiding her face. She grabbed onto the ends of her sleeves and gave a small smile and nodded.

"I'll be fine, Mom," she said. She spoke so low Renée barely heard her, but she was used to it. She would rarely speak any louder.

"Tell Charlie I said hi."

Evangeline nodded. Isabella voiced it.

"I will."

"I'll see you soon. You can come right back as soon as you need me," Renée insisted. But the girls weren't fooled by their mother, they could see the sacrifice in her eyes behind the promise.

"Don't worry about us," Isabella urged. "It'll be great. I love you, Mom."

Renée hugged her for a minute before she turned towards Evangeline.

"Make friends in Forks, okay, honey?" Renée said, slipping her fingers in the hood and gently pulled it back from her daughter's head. Evangeline had bags under her blue eyes. She always had trouble sleeping and she didn't like make up. Her family barely noticed it anymore. Renée tenderly stroke her daughter's long brown hair before she hugged her like she had done with Bella. "Stay close to your sister, you only have one you know," she tried to joke. Evangeline smiled and looked down, pulling her hood back up to her face.

It's a four-hour flight from Phoenix to Seattle, another hour in a small plane up to Port Angeles, and then an hour drive back down to Forks. Both sisters stayed quiet. Evangeline was listening to music way to loud Isabella could hear it too. But she was used to it. That's all she ever did. Listen to music and close her eyes and leave far, far away from reality.

When they landed to Port Angeles, it was raining. Evangeline barely noticed it, Isabella wasn't surprised. She had already said her goodbyes to the sun. Charlie was waiting for them with the cruiser. Charlie was Police Chief Swan to the good people of Forks. Isabella's primary motivation behind buying a car, despite the scarcity of her funds, was that she refused to be driven around town in a car with red and blue lights on top. Nothing slows down traffic like a cop.

Charlie gave an awkward, one-armed hug to Isabella but embraced Evangeline with his arms wide opened. Isabella wasn't jealous. She didn't mind it at all. She was close to her mother, her sister was close to her father.

"Hey, Angie," he said before planting a kiss on the side of her head which was concealed by her black hood.

"Hi, Dad," she said, hugging him back. "How are you?" she asked. It was unusual for her to ask about someone. But she did love her father, and she had missed him deeply.

"I'm great," he smiled. "Happy you're here."

Evangeline quickly looked up and smiled at him before looking back at her feet.

"It's good to see you Bells," he said. "You haven't changed much. How's Renée?"

"Mom's fine. It's good to see you too, Charlie."

Her father sighed and it took her a second to figure out what was bothering him.

"Dad…" she corrected herself.

They didn't have much bags. There were no need for a winter wardrobe in Phoenix. But it barely fitted in the trunk of the cruiser and some bags had to be put on the backseats, next to Evangeline.

Once in their father's car, Charlie didn't try to make conversation which didn't bother his daughters. He knew how Isabella felt about Forks and he also knew Evangeline wouldn't mind the change of temperature, weather or landscape. He was more worried about her though, as she had always been the fragile one. He couldn't help but glance in the rear view window at his daughter in the backseat of his car. She was absentmindedly looking out the window with her headphones on, listening to the same playlist over and over again. It was loud and Korean, so she wouldn't be bothered by the lyrics. She didn't have to think. She could just listen to the beat and drone out everything else around her.

Neither of them were what anyone would call verbose and they didn't know what there was to say regardless. Isabella knew her father was more than a little confused by her decision – he knew how much she hated Forks. He understood why Evangeline was there. She would go wherever she was told to go. And she didn't share the same distaste of Forks as her big sister.

"I found a good car for you, really cheap," he announced, breaking the silence.

"What kind of car?" Isabella was suspicious of the way he said "good car for you" as opposed to just "good car."

"Well, it's a truck actually, a Chevy."

"Where did you find it?"

"Do you remember Billy Black down at La Push?" La Push is the tiny Indian reservation on the coast.

"No."

"He used to go fishing with us during the summer," Charlie prompted. Isabella understood why she didn't remember him. She did a good job of blocking painful, unnecessary things from her memory.

"He's in a wheelchair now," Charlie continued when his daughter didn't respond, "so he can't drive anymore, and he offered to sell me his truck cheap."

"What year is it?" Isabella asked. She noticed his change of expression and understood he was hoping she wouldn't ask.

"Well, Billy's done a lot of work on the engine – it's only a few years old, really."

"When did he buy it?" she wouldn't give up that easily.

"He bought it in 1984, I think."

"Did he buy it new?"

"Well, no. I think it was new in the early sixities – or late fifties at the earliest," he admitted sheepishly.

"Ch – Dad, I don't really know anything about cars. I wouldn't be able to fix it if anything went wrong, and I couldn't afford a mechanic…"

"Really, Bella, the thing runs great. They don't build them like that anymore." Isabella held a sigh at "the thing."

"How cheap is cheap?"

"Well, honey, I kind of already bought it for you. As a homecoming gift."

Isabella rose on her seat.

"You didn't need to do that, Dad, I was going to buy myself a car."

"I don't mind. I want you to be happy here. Plus, the car isn't just for you. It's also for Angie."

Many thoughts crossed her minds. Free car. Be happy in Forks. Angie. She relaxed in her seat and sighed.

"That's really nice, Dad. Thanks. I really appreciate it."

She turned around and put her hand on her sister's knee. Evangeline's head moved to her left to see Isabella gesturing her to remove her headphones.

"Dad bought us a car," she said.

"He did?" she asked.

"Homecoming gift," she nodded.

"Thanks, Dad," Evangeline said, leaning forward to kiss his cheek.

"You're welcome, honey," he smiled. "Get back in your seat," he gently said, watching her in the rear view window.

It rained all the way from Port Angeles to Forks. Isabella couldn't look outside, the weather made her feel depressed. She was going to have to get used to it. As impossible as it sounded. It was beautiful, of course; she couldn't deny that. Everything was green: the trees, their trunks covered with moss, they branches hanging with a canopy of it, the ground covered with ferns. Even the air filtered down greenly through the leaves. It was too green – an alien planet.

Charlie stopped the car in front of the house. Isabella stared at it with chagrin. She knew the house was small but she'd remember it to be bigger. She heard both her father and sister get out of the car and followed them. It had stopped raining. But everything was grey. Green and grey. She hated it.

"The car looks great, Dad," she heard her sister say. She found the truck parked in the driveway. It was a faded red color, with big, rounded fenders and a bulbous cab. To her intense surprise, she loved it.

"It really does," she smiled.

"I'm glad you like it," he said gruffly, embarrassed.

He helped them get all their stuff upstairs. Their bedrooms were across from each other. Isabella's was facing the street and Evangeline the garden and forest. Charlie had cleared the room that was once his office. He bought new furniture too. When they were younger and still came in the summer, they used to sleep in the same room. But Charlie thought they were old enough now and needed their privacy. He bought two desks, containing school supplies he guessed they would need, but all the furniture in Evangeline's room was brand new.

"I cleared this room out. Thought you'd both prefer to have a room of your own."

"It's great, Ch – Dad," she thanked him.

"The desk is new," he said, entering her bedroom. "It's a good work lamp, too," he added, pointing at it. "The sheets are new too, you like purple, right?"

"It's great, Dad," she nodded.

He nodded back and turned around to join Evangeline in her room. "I got you white sheets, I know you prefer black but…"

"It looks good, Dad," she cut him off, smiling at him. She had pulled her hood down. "Thanks."

There was a moment of silence before Charlie finally left, leaving the two sisters alone. Their eyes met and they wordlessly looked at each other for a minute before they took a step towards their doors and closed them.


	2. First Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> /!\ Mention of self-harm /!\

It was nice for both girls to be alone, not to have to smile or looked pleased. Bella stared dejectedly out the window at the sheeting rain and sighed. It had only been a few hours and she missed the sun already. Evangeline didn't have a problem with the rain. Or the cold or the weather at all. She had bigger problems.

Both sisters dreaded the morning to come. Forks High School had a frightening total of only three hundred and fifty-seven – now fifty-nine – students; there were more than seven hundred people in Bella's junior class alone back home. All of the kids had grown up together – their grandparents had been toddlers together. They would be the new girls from the big city, curiosities, freaks.

Maybe, if they looked like girls from Phoenix should, they could have worked it to their advantage. But both girls had always been ivory-skinned. They looked like ghosts. Bella's skin stayed white, no matter how much time she would spend in the sun. And Evangeline never showed her skin. She was always wearing a hoodie or a shirt with long – too long – sleeves.

Neither of them were athletes, though Evangeline could run without hurting herself, unlike her older sister who would harm herself and others if she tried to walk and chew gum at the same time.

After Bella finished putting her clothes in the old pine dresser, she took her bag of bathroom necessities and went to the communal bathroom to clean herself up after the day of travel. The fact that there was only one bathroom was another inconvenience to the girls, even though the room was big enough for them not to complain.

Bella looked at her face in the mirror as she brushed through her tangled, damp hair. She sighed. Maybe it was the light – she thought – but she already looked sallower, unhealthy. She was stepping out of the bathroom when her sister opened her door. They almost ran into each other. Bella moved out of her sister's way and got back to her bedroom.

Evangeline was careful to lock the door behind her before she settled her bag on the sink. She didn't look up at the mirror, she rarely did. She liked it there, alone in the cold bathroom. She couldn't hear anyone think. Though, if there was anyone else in her sister's bedroom right now she would have been close enough to hear them, but for some reason she never understood, her sister is the only person she can't hear. But the next morning would be a nightmare. All the other students would be talking about her. Thinking about her. How would she be able to escape that?

She opened her bag and emptied it. She took a silver shining blade out of it. She hid the sharp razor blades in a place she knew nobody would find them. Not that anyone would be looking into her things, but she had a sister, and Bella could be out of make up one day and find the blades while innocently looking into her sister's bag. She removed her hoodie and brought the long sleeves of her shirt up to reveal her scarred wrists. She passed her thumb over the latest cut. It still hurt but not enough. She was going to need a bigger distraction if she was to survive the next day.

The rain and the wind kept both girls awake until midnight. Thick fog was all they could see out their windows in the morning and claustrophobia creeped up on them. They couldn't see the sky; it was like being trapped in a cage.

They ate breakfast quietly with their father. He wished them good luck at school. Both girls thanked him, knowing his hope was wasted. Good luck tended to avoid Bella and nothing could stop the voices in Evangeline's head. Charlie left first, off the police station that was his wife and family. After he left, his daughters sat at the old square oak table in the unmatching chairs and examined the small kitchen. Nothing had changed. Renée had painted the cabinets yellow eighteen years ago in an attempts to bring some sunshine into the house. Bella saw the pictures over the small fireplace. First, a wedding picture of Charlie and Renée in Las Vegas, then one of herself the day she was born next to the same picture of Evangeline, followed by school pictures. Those were embarrassing to look at – she was going to have to get her father to put them away, at least while they were living there.

Bella couldn't stay in the house anymore. They were going to be early for school, but the pictures had made her uncomfortable. They took their bags and jackets and stepped into the rain. It was just drizzling. Evangeline locked the door before she followed her sister to the truck. The sloshing of their new waterproof boots was an unusual sound and very unnerving to Bella. She missed the normal crunch of gravel as she walked.

Inside the truck, it was nice and dry. The engine started quickly, to Bella's relief but it was so loud it surprised Evangeline who jumped in her seat.

"Sorry," Bella quickly apologized, as if it was her fault. "Are you gonna be okay today?"

"Sure," Evangeline nodded, looking away.

She enjoyed the ride. It was never quieter but when she was with her unreadable sister.

Finding the school wasn't difficult, though neither of them had been there before. The school was, like most other things, just off the highway. It was not obvious that it was a school; only the sign, which declared it to be the Forks High School, made Bella stop. She had no idea where to go, but she followed Evangeline's instructions. Evangeline's instinct was to be trusted. She was rarely wrong. Bella drove around the school and was glad to see that most of the cars were older like hers, nothing flashy. In Phoenix, it was a common thing to see a new Mercedes or Porsche in the student lot. The nicest car there was a shiny Volvo, and it stood out. Bella was quick to cut the engine as soon as she was in a spot, so that the thunderous volume wouldn't draw attention.

They both took a deep breath before they got out of the truck. They kept their face pulled back into their hood as they walked to the sidewalk, crowded with teenagers.

Evangeline did her best to stay focus on her own thoughts. She was playing a song in her head and focused on the lyrics rather than on the other voices that were trying to invade her mind. She followed her sister in the reception where they were welcomed by a red-haired woman wearing glasses.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

"I'm Isabella Swan. And this is my sister Evangeline."

Immediate awareness lit her eyes. They were expected. Daughters to the Chief's flighty ex-wife, come home at last.

"Of course," she said. She dug through a precariously stacked pile of documents on her desk till she found the ones she was looking for. "I have your schedules right here and a map of the school."

"Thank you," Bella tried her best to smile.

She handed the map and schedule to her sister before they inspected them. It looked like they wouldn't see each other again before lunch.

"Are you gonna be okay?" Bella asked again.

"I'll be fine, Bella," she nodded, not trying to smile. "See you at lunch."

Evangeline escaped the small office where the receptionist's thoughts were becoming as loud as screams.

Bella watched her sister walk away before she looked down at her own schedule.

English class was going to be boring. She had already studied everything back in Phoenix. She wondered if her mother would send her a folder of old essays, or if she would think that was cheating. Bella was distracted and didn't listen to a word the teacher said. After English, she met Eric, a dark-haired boy with a skin problem who insisted on showing her the way. Mr. Varner, her trigonometry teacher, was the only one who made her stand in front of the class to introduce herself. She would have hated him anyway, just because of the subject he taught.

Mr. Varner wanted Evangeline to do the same, though she didn't have a problem with trigonometry, she didn't like him either. She looked up at him, catching his eyes in hers.

"I don't think that's necessary," Evangeline said.

"If you say so," Mr. Varner nodded after a few seconds of silence, ignoring what had just happened.

Evangeline didn't like being surrounded with people. It was like being in a room where people kept screaming louder and louder. It was easier with time, to block the familiar voices. As her classmates walked into the room, pictures of herself sitting at her table came flashing at her from different perspectives. The voices were merely curious, nobody thought anything too mean. Evangeline started pressing on her wrists, trying to bring silence into her mind.

The best way to ignore the voices was to focus on something else, but the best way to stop it all was pain. She tried to focus on the lesson as she pressed on her cuts with her thumb. She managed to build a wall in her mind, hoping it would be strong enough to last the entire day.

After the bell rang, a tall boy with light brown hair came to meet her.

"Hey, I'm Dean," he smiled at her. "You're Evangeline, right?"

"Angie," she corrected him. She spoke so low he almost didn't hear her.

"Angie. What's your next class?"

"Um, let me look."

Dean insisted on showing her the way. He was very nice and couldn't stop talking. He asked her one or two questions but he mostly spoke about the teachers, telling her who was nice and who shouldn't be messed with. Evangeline was grateful for his help. She was relieved she couldn't hear his thoughts. She had spent the last hour building a wall to block the voices out and there weren't enough people around her to destroy that wall.

The rest of the morning went smoothly. Evangeline was in total control of her mind. Whenever the wall would start to shake, she'd press the cuts on her wrists with her thumb and the pain would make her gain control again.

She wouldn't have minded eating alone, but she was grateful for her sister because she knew if Dean had seen her alone, he would have insisted on eating with her.

"Angela, this is my sister, Angie," she said. "Do you mind if she eats with us?"

"Of course not!" she smiled. "Nice to meet you Angie."

"Hello," Evangeline gave her a shy smile.

Evangeline stared at her plate and ate in silence. She focused on the voices, the real voices, of the people at her table. But, she heard someone call her sister's name. Nobody else heard it, they couldn't have. Evangeline looked up to see a dark-haired boy at the other end of the room. He was eating with seven other students and they were talking about Bella. Finally, the boy started to wave at her.

"Bella, I think he's calling you," Evangeline told her sister.

"Oh, that's Eric," Jessica – Evangeline thought her name was – said.

Bella shyly smiled and waved back. That's when she first saw them.

They were sitting in the corner of the cafeteria, at the other end of the long room. They weren't talking, and they weren't eating, though they each had a tray of untouched food in front of them. They weren't gawking at the two sisters, unlike most of the other students, so it was safe to stare at them without fear of meeting an excessively interested pair of eyes. But it was none of these things that caught, and held, Bella's attention.

They didn't look anything alike. Of the three boys, one was big – muscled like a serious weight lifter, with dark, curly hair. Another was taller, leaner, but still muscular, and honey blond. The last was lanky, less bulky, with untidy, bronze-colored hair. He was more boyish than the others, who looked like they could be in college, or even teachers rather than students.

The girls were opposites. The tall one was statuesque. She had a beautiful figure, the kind you saw on the cover of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue, the kind that made every girl around her take a hit on her self-esteem just by being in the same room. Her hair was golden, gently waving to the middle of her back. The short girl was pixielike, thin in the extreme, with small features. Her hair was a deep black, cropped short and pointing in every direction.

And yet, they were all exactly alike. Every one of them was chalky pale, the palest of all the students living in this sunless town. They all had very dark eyes despite the range in hair tones. They also had dark shadows under those eyes – purplish, bruiselike shadows. As if they were all suffering from a sleepless night, or almost done recovering from a broken nose. Though their noses, all their features, were straight, perfect, angular.

Their faces, so different, so similar, were all devastatingly, inhumanly beautiful. They were faces you never expected to see except perhaps on the airbrushed pages of a fashion magazine. Or painted by an old master as the face of an angel. It was hard to decide who was the most beautiful – maybe the perfect blond girl, or the bronze haired boy.

"Who are they?" Bella asked Angela. As she looked up to see who she meant – though already knowing, probably, from her tone – suddenly he looked at her, the thinner one, the boyish one, the youngest, perhaps. He looked at Angela for a fraction of second, and then his dark eyes flickered to Bella's.

Evangeline suddenly looked up, a picture of herself sitting between Angela and her sister flashing in her mind. She saw him, the unbelievably beautiful boy sitting at the other end of the room. He was staring at her sister but his eyes quickly landed on her. He was frustrated. He knew she knew he was. But how could she know? And how could he know she knew? They stared at each other for what seemed an eternity, both of them understanding their silent conversation, both of them knowing; they had the same gift.

They were both speechless. They couldn't stop staring at each other.

"That's Edward, Alice and Emmett Cullen," Angela said, bringing Evangeline back to reality.

Evangeline looked down at her hands and pressed on her cut. She won't be going inside his mind just like he won't be going inside hers.

"And Rosalie and Jasper Hale; they all live together with Dr. Cullen and his sister," she said, under her breath.

Bella glanced sideways at the beautiful boy, who was looking at his tray now, picking a bagel to pieces with his long, pale fingers. His mouth was moving very quickly, his perfect lips barely opening. The other four suddenly looked up at Evangeline which surprised her sister.

"Why are they all looking at you?" Jessica asked.

"I don't know," Angie quickly said in a whisper, staring at her plate.

"I'm Edward." She heard suddenly, which startled her. She couldn't believe it. Another one. Finally, she had met someone like her. She wasn't alone. And she wasn't crazy.

"You okay?" her sister asked.

"Yeah, I'm just cold," she lied.

He wasn't inside her mind. He couldn't be. She was inside his. She was hearing his thoughts. If she wanted to, she could directly speak to him inside his mind, without him needing to read her thoughts. She didn't reply, she didn't want him to know she heard him. She pressed once again on her cut, suppressing a cry of pain. Hopefully, she didn't open it. Blood could get messy.

"They are…very nice-looking," Bella struggled with the conspicuous understatement.

"Yes!" Jessica agreed with another giggle. "They're all together though – Emmet and Rosalie, and Jasper and Alice, I mean. And they live together." Her voice held all the shock and condemnation of the small town.

"Which ones are the Cullens?" Bella asked. "They don't look related…"

"Oh, they're not. Dr. Cullen is really young, in his twenties or early thirties. They're all adopted. The Hales are brother and sister, twins – the blondes – and they're foster children."

"They look a little old for foster children."

"They are now, Jasper and Rosalie are both eighteen, but they've been with the Cullens since they were eight."

"That's really kind of nice – for them to take care of all those kids like that, when they're so young and everything."

"I guess so," Jessica admitted reluctantly. She didn't seem to like the doctor and his sister for some reason. With the glances she was throwing at their adopted children, Bella presumed the reason was jealousy. "It's still weird Dr. Cullen and his sister would live together though with a bunch of kids…"

"Why are they still looking at you?" Angela asked Evangeline.

She looked up at her neighbor before she looked at the Cullens.

"I don't know, I've never talked to any of them," Evangeline shyly answered.

"Well, he looks interested," Jessica scoffed, a hint of jealousy in her voice.

Evangeline looked up once more at Edward who was smiling, amused.

"We're new here," she shrugged. "Everybody is looking at us."

"That's true," Bella sighed. "Have they always lived here?" she asked.

"No," Jessica answered in a voice that implied it should be obvious. "They just moved down two years ago from somewhere in Alaska."

Bella and Evangeline felt a surge of pity, and relief. Pity because, as beautiful as they were, they were outsiders, clearly not accepted. Relief that they weren't the only newcomers here, and certainly not the most interesting by any standard.

Evangeline looked away, trying hard to keep her wall up. But as Bella examined them, the youngest, one of the Cullens, looked up and met her gaze with evident curiosity in his expression. Like he was expecting something of her.

"Which one is the boy with the reddish brown hair?" she asked. She peeked at him from the corner of her eye, and he was still staring at her, but not gawking like the other students had today – he had a slightly frustrated expression. She looked down again.

"That's Edward. He's gorgeous, of course, but don't waste your time. He doesn't date. Apparently none of the girls here are good-looking enough for him," she sniffed, a clear case of sour grapes. Bella tried to hide a smile so she wouldn't upset her new friend.

After a few more minutes, the Cullens left the table. They were all noticeably graceful – even the big, brawny one. It was unsettling to watch. Edward gave one last look to Evangeline who looked away, hoping she made it clear she didn't want to talk to him.

The rest of the day went quietly for Evangeline, who started to recognize a few faces. She sat next to a girl called Emily whom she liked. The blonde girl didn't ask too many questions and she was smart and nice. They would get along fine.

The final bell rang at last. Bella and Evangeline were supposed to return their paperwork to the office. When Evangeline stepped in, her sister was already there, as was Edward. The cold wind gusted through the room, rustling the papers on the desk, swirling Bella's hair on her face.

Edward's back stiffened, and he turned slowly to glare at her. At first Evangeline thought he had noticed her presence. But he hadn't. He was looking at her sister with piercing, hate-filled eyes. Surprise, curiosity and incomprehension made Evangeline let go of the wall she had installed in her mind. What she heard and felt didn't make any sense. Rage, hunger, disgust, restraint…It was like all he wanted to do was jump on Bella and… she couldn't make sense of the rest. As the thought crossed her mind, Edward's eyes flickered to hers.

"Never mind, then," he said hastily in a voice like velvet. "I can see that it's impossible. Thank you for your help." And he turned on his heel, giving one last look to Evangeline before he disappeared out the door.

"What did you do to him?" Evangeline asked, stunned.

Her sister didn't answer. She went to the desk, her face white for once instead of red, and handed the signed slip.

"How did your first day go, dear?" the receptionist asked maternally.

"Fine," she lied, her voice weak. She didn't look convince, never was Evangeline.

When they got to the truck, it was almost the last car in the lot. It seemed like a haven, already the closest thing to home Isabella had in this damp green hole. Once inside, Evangeline looked at her sister who was staring out the windshield blankly.

"What happened?" she asked.

"Nothing," she shook her head. She was trying hard not to tear up. "I…I didn't even say anything to him…It was like…I smelled horribly bad or something."

Evangeline frowned and leaned forward to get a whiff of her sister.

"You smell fine," she said.

"I know!" she cried, upset.

"Maybe it had nothing to do with you."

Bella scoffed. "He was trying to get out of Biology. He just doesn't like me, but…it's like he hates me, I never even said a word to him!"

Evangeline had nothing to say so she didn't say anything.

Bella was too upset to drive but soon both girls were cold enough to need the heater, so she turned the key and the engine roared to life.


	3. Edward Cullen

The next day was better… and worse.  
It was better because it wasn’t raining, though the clouds were dense and opaque. It was easier because Bella and Angie knew what to expect of their day. Bella was shadowed by Mike and Eric who seemed to have taken an interest in her. People didn’t look at them as much as they had the day before. Bella sat with a big group at lunch that included Mike, Eric, Jessica and several other people whose names and faces she now remembered. Angie ate with her classmate Emily. It was a relief to have found someone like Emily. She was quiet just like her and she didn’t have a busy mind.  
It was worse because they were tired; they still couldn’t sleep with the wind echoing around the house. Edward Cullen kept both girls awake. Bella was still upset about what had happened and Angie still couldn’t believe that she had finally met another telepath like her. It was worse because Mr. Varner called on Bella in Trig and she had the wrong answer. It was miserable because she had to play volleyball, and the one time she didn’t cringe out of the way of the ball, she hit her teammate in the head with it. Angie was better at volleyball than her sister but she still hated it. And it was worse because Edward Cullen wasn’t in school at all.

“Where is Edward?” Esme asked Carlisle, worried and panicked.  
“He came to the hospital and took my car. He left.”  
“He left?” Emmett repeated, confused. “Why?”  
“I don’t know. He just needed to leave Forks.”  
“Could it be because of her?” Jasper asked.  
“No,” Rosalie shook her head. “If she had heard…if she knew what we were, Edward would have told us. It’s not about the telepath.”  
“The telepath?” Carlisle asked, surprised.  
“You know, the sheriff’s daughters just arrived in town?” Emmett reminded him and he nodded.  
“One of them is a telepath,” Rosalie said.  
“She’s like us?” Esme asked.  
“No,” Alice answered. “They are both human. But the youngest one. She can read minds too.”  
“Did you see her in one of your vision?” Carlisle asked.  
“I saw her coming. I just didn’t know why it was interesting, that’s why I didn’t mention it.”  
“Could it be possible for her to find out what we are?” Carlisle asked.  
“I suppose we should be careful about what we think around her,” Jasper said.  
“I doubt she’d tell anyone, though,” Emmett chuckled. “Nobody would believe her.”  
“We should be careful, still,” Carlisle told them.  
“What about Edward?” Esme asked.  
“He will be back,” Carlisle said, calmly. “He just needs to figure out what to do.”

All morning, Bella was dreading lunch, fearing his bizarre glares. Part of her wanted to confront him and demand to know what his problem was. While she was lying sleepless in her bed, she even imagined what she would say. But she knew herself too well to think she would really have the guts to do it.  
But when she walked into the cafeteria with Jessica – trying to keep her eyes from sweeping the place for him, and failing entirely – she saw that his four siblings of sorts were sitting together at the same table, and he was not with them.  
Angie was both relieved and disappointed at his absence. Relieved because at least he wouldn’t try to talk to her. Disappointed because she did want to see him again. He who was just like her.  
They both waited for him to arrive, even though they would never admit it. Bella had mixed feelings. She walked to Biology with more confidence when, by the end of lunch, he still hadn’t showed. Mike was still following her, taking on the qualities of a golden retriever. She was going to have to do something about that but she needed to be diplomatic and she had never been enormously tactful.  
She was relieved that she had the desk to herself, that Edward was absent. She told herself that repeatedly. But she couldn’t get rid of the nagging suspicion that she was the reason he wasn’t there. It was ridiculous, and egotistical to think that she could affect anyone that strongly. It was impossible. And yet she couldn’t stop worrying that it was true.  
When the school day was finally done, Angie was relieved. The voices hadn’t been too loud and she did her best to ignore them. It was one of those rare days that went by smoothly, when she wouldn’t be bothered by what she was hearing and she could easily chase the voices away just by pressing on her cuts. She hoped that, one day, she would be able to constantly keep her mind close and only open it at will. To be in total control of her abilities, like maybe Edward was.  
The night before, the two sisters had discovered that their father couldn’t cook much besides fried eggs and bacon. Bella was used to cook and she requested that she be assigned kitchen detail for the duration of her stay. He was willing enough to hand over the keys to the banquet hall. They also found out that he had no food in the house. So Bella and Angie made a shopping list and took the cash from the jar in the cupboard labeled FOOD MONEY, and they were on their way to the Thriftway.  
Bella backed carefully in the line of cars that were waiting to exit the parking lot. As she waited, trying to pretend that the earsplitting rumble was coming from someone else’s car, she saw the two Cullens and the Hale twins getting into their car. It was the shiny Volvo. Of course.  
She hadn’t noticed their clothes before – she had been too mesmerized by their faces. Now that she looked, it was obvious that they were all dressed exceptionally well; simply, but in clothes that subtly hinted at designer origins.  
“Some people have everything,” Bella mused. Angie looked up and followed her sister’s gaze.  
“Doesn’t look like it helped them much here,” Angie replied, when she understood what she was talking about.  
“They probably prefer it this way. Good looks and money open every door.”  
The Thriftway was not far from the school, just a few streets south, off the highway. They enjoyed being inside the supermarket. It felt normal. Bella did the shopping in Phoenix and she fell into the pattern of the familiar task gladly.  
“Did you see him today?”  
“Who?” Bella asked, knowing exactly who her sister was talking about.  
“You know who.”  
Bella sighed. “No.”  
“I wonder why…” Angie mused.  
Her sister didn’t reply.  
They drove back home. Angie let her sister unload the groceries alone. She walked up to her room and went straight to the bathroom. She changed into more comfortable clothes and changed her bandages. She sat on her bed, cross legged, and opened her laptop and started to focus on her homework. Her phone kept buzzing. She sighed, knowing exactly who it was. Her mother kept sending her emails and when she received no answer to those emails she started to send text messages.  
Angie replied to her mother, asking her to calm down, assuring her that everything was ok.  
When she was done with her homework she went downstairs. Bella was cooking. She set the table in silence and she was almost done when Charlie arrived.  
“Hey, Dad, welcome home,” Angie smiled.  
“Thanks,” he smiled back. “What’s for dinner?” he asked warily. Renée was an imaginative cook, and her experiments weren’t always edible.  
“Steak and potatoes,” Bella answered and she smiled, amused, when he looked relieved.  
“Smells good, Bell.”  
“Thanks.”  
They ate wordlessly. They weren’t bothered by the silence.  
“Do you know the Cullen family?” Bella asked her father hesitantly, breaking the silence.  
Angie glanced at her father, curious too.  
“Dr. Cullen’s family? Sure. Dr. Cullen’s a great man.”  
“They… the kids… are a little different. They don’t seem to fit in very well at school.”  
Charlie surprised her daughters by looking angry.  
“People in this town,” he muttered. “Dr. Cullen is a brilliant surgeon who could probably work in any hospital in the world, make ten times the salary he gets here,” he continued, getting louder. “We’re lucky to have him – lucky that his sister and the children wanted to live in a small town. He’s an asset to the community, and all of those kids are well behaved and polite. I had my doubts, when they first moved in, with all those adopted teenagers. I thought we might have some problems with them. But they’re all very mature – I haven’t had one speck of trouble from any of them. That’s more than I can say for the children of some folks who have lived in this town for generations. And they stick together the way a family should – camping trips every other weekend… Just because they’re newcomers, people have to talk.”  
It was the longest speech they’d ever heard Charlie make. He must feel strongly about whatever people were saying.  
Angie tried to calm him. “They seemed nice to me. We just noticed they kept to themselves.”  
Bella nodded. “They’re all very attractive,” she added, trying to be more complimentary.  
“You should see the doctor,” Charlie said, laughing. “I can’t imagine what he’s going through, being single and looking the way he does surrounded by the nurses at the hospital. They have a hard time concentrating on their work with him around.”  
They lapsed back into silence as they finished eating.  
That night, it was finally quiet and both girls fell asleep quickly, exhausted.  
The rest of the week went uneventful. Edward never showed up. Bella made new friends and Mike kept inviting her to a trip to the La Push Ocean Park in two weeks. Bella accepted his invitation out of politeness. Beaches should be hot and dry.  
Angie wasn’t too bothered by the voices which were gone as soon as she felt a little pain.  
Their first weekend in Forks passed without incident. Charlie worked most of the weekend. Bella cleaned the house, got ahead on her homework, talked with her mother and read. Angie read too and texted her mother. She drew – finished some old drawings she had started in Phoenix and started some new ones. She took her guitar out and played a little. She missed playing music, especially the piano.  
During lunch of the last couple of days, Angie had tried to read the Cullens’s minds. But they were all thinking about school. Some homework they had to finish, a book they had to read… It was like a broken record that repeated again and again in their head. They never thought about anything else. When she realized they might be doing it on purpose, because they knew she could hear their thoughts, she looked up and met with Alice’s eyes. The small girl smiled and winked at her confirming her fears. They knew.  
Angie blushed, looked down and rapidly left the cafeteria.  
She had never told anyone about what she could do. It was a secret she had always kept and she didn’t know how she felt about it. The Cullens knew her secret and one of them had the exact same one.  
Monday morning was colder. It wasn’t raining. It was much worse. It was snowing.  
Bella was in a terrible mood. Snow meant snow fights. People will be throwing wet snow balls at them all day.  
At lunch, Bella glanced at the table in the corner out of habit. And she froze where she stood. There were five people at the table.  
“Are you going to talk to him?” Angie asked her sister.  
“Why would I do that?” she mumbled.  
“You deserve an explanation,” she said. She was speaking so low she didn’t know how Bella could hear her with all the noise of the crowded cafeteria.  
“You’re eating with us, Bella?” Jessica asked them, suddenly. Making the sisters turn around toward their red-haired friend.  
Bella looked down at her sister, who was a little smaller than her, silently asking her if she wanted to eat with them.  
“I’m good,” she replied, shyly, walking away. She found an empty table where she hoped people would leave her alone.  
She glanced at Edward who gave her a small smile. She saw Alice was also smiling at her. A bright, happy smile, as if she was happy to see her for some reason. She blushed and looked away.  
“Hello, Angie.”  
Angie jumped, startled by the musical voice that she guessed belonged to Edward. She wondered why she had heard him when she had successfully manage to chase all the other voices in her head. Maybe she did want to talk to him after all.  
“H- hi.” She blushed, embarrassed. She couldn’t even speak without stuttering in her mind. She heard him laugh and his laugh was contagious. She chuckled, amused. She shyly looked back up. She saw Edward and Alice were still smiling. Edward nodded at her. Angie discreetly waved at him, so no one else would see.  
Bella saw Edward and Alice smiling at her sister and wondered what was going on. She was certain they didn’t know each other.  
“Bella, what are you staring at?” Jessica intruded, her eyes following her stare.  
At that precise moment, his eyes flashed over to meet hers. She dropped her head, letting her hair fall to conceal her face. She was sure, though, in the instant their eyes met, that he didn’t look harsh or unfriendly as he had the last time she’d seen him. He looked merely curious again, unsatisfied in some way.  
“Edward Cullen is staring at you,” Jessica giggled in her ear.  
“He doesn’t look angry, does he?”  
“No,” she said, sounding confused by the question. “Should he be?”  
“I don’t think he likes me,” Bella confided.  
“The Cullens don’t like anybody…well, they don’t notice anybody enough to like them. But he’s still staring at you.”  
“Stop looking at him!” Bella hissed. Jessica snickered, but looked away.  
Lunch was interesting. Angie learnt that Edward couldn’t hear her sister’s thoughts either.  
On their way to Biology, Bella noticed it was raining. She never thought she’d be happy about that. Mike kept up a string of complaints about the snow on the way to building four.  
When Bella walked in the classroom she was relieved to see her table was empty. Mr. Banner, her teacher, was walking around the room, distributing one microscope and box slides to each table. She kept her eyes away from the door, doodling idly on the cover of her notebook. She heard very clearly when the chair next to her moved, but her eyes stayed carefully focused on the pattern she was drawing.  
“Hello,” said a quiet, musical voice. She looked up, stunned that he was speaking to her. He was sitting as far away from her as the desk allowed, but his chair was angled toward her. “My name is Edward Cullen,” he continued. “I didn’t have a chance to introduce myself last week. You must be Bella Swan.”  
Bella’s mind was spinning with confusion. Had she made up the whole thing? He was perfectly polite now.  
She wondered why he called her Bella and not Isabella like everyone else had.  
Mr. Banner started class, explaining the lab they would be doing today.  
“Ladies first, partner?” Edward asked. “Or I could start, if you wish.”  
“No,” she said. “I’ll go ahead.”  
She was showing off just a little, she had already done this lab in Phoenix. They were done within minutes.  
“So, Edward, didn’t you think Isabella should get a chance with the microscope?” Mr. Banner asked.  
“Bella,” Edward corrected automatically. “Actually, she identified three of the five.”  
“Have you done this lab before?” he asked, skeptical.  
“Not with onion root.”  
“Whitefish blastula?”  
“Yeah,” she nodded.  
“Were you in an advanced placement program in Phoenix?” he asked.  
“Yes.”  
“Well, I guess it’s a good thing you two are lab partners,” he said before walking away.  
After he left, she began doodling on her notebook again.  
“It’s too bad about the snow, isn’t it?” Edward asked. She had the feeling he was forcing himself to make small talk with her.  
“Not really,” she answered honestly, instead of pretending to be normal like everyone else.  
“You don’t like the cold,” he said. It wasn’t a question.  
“Or the wet.”  
“Forks must be a difficult place for you to live.”  
“You have no idea,” she muttered darkly.  
He looked fascinated by her answer. “Why did you come here, then?”  
“It’s… complicated.”  
“I think I can keep up.”  
Bella sighed. She made the mistake of meeting his gaze. His dark gold eyes confused her, and she answered without thinking.  
“My mother got remarried.”  
“That doesn’t sound so complex,” he disagreed. “When did that happen?”  
“Last September.”  
“And you don’t like him,” he supposed.  
“No, Phil is fine. Too young maybe, but nice enough.”  
“Why didn’t you stay with them?”  
She didn’t understand why he was interested but he continued to stare at her with penetrating eyes, as if her dull life’s story was somehow vitally important.  
“Phil travels a lot. He plays ball for a living.”  
“Have I heard of him?” he asked, smiling in response.  
“Probably not. He doesn’t play well. Strictly minor league. He moves around a lot.”  
“And your mother sent you here so that she could travel with him,” he assumed.  
Bella frowned. “No, she did not send me here. I sent myself.”  
“I don’t understand.”  
Bella sighed.  
“She stayed with us at first, but it made her unhappy, she missed him. So I decided it was time to spend some quality time with Charlie.”  
“But now you’re unhappy.”  
“And?”  
“That doesn’t seem fair.”  
“Hasn’t anyone told you?” she chuckled. “Life isn’t fair.”  
“I believe I have heard that somewhere before,” he said, dryly. “What about your sister?”  
“What about her?” Bella frowned.  
“Does she dislike Forks as much as you do?”  
“No,” she shook her head. “She doesn’t mind.”  
He looked like he was trying to say something but he didn’t know if he should.  
“Have you talked to her?” she asked.  
“No,” he shook his head. “Why? Has she said something?”  
“No,” she shrugged. “Should she have?”  
“No.”  
“So, that’s all,” Bella insisted, wondering why he was still staring at her.  
“You put on a good show,” he said, slowly. “But I’d be willing to bet that you’re suffering more than you let anyone see.”  
She grimaced at him.  
“Am I wrong?”  
She didn’t answer and tried to ignore him.  
“I didn’t think so,” he murmured, smugly.  
“Why does it matter to you?” she asked, irritated.  
“That’s a very good question,” he muttered, so quietly that she wondered if he was talking to himself. “You’re not close with your sister, are you?”  
Bella sighed.  
“Am I annoying you?” he asked. He sounded amused.  
“Not exactly. I’m more annoyed at myself. My face is so easy to read – my mother calls me her open book,” she frowned.  
“On the contrary, I find you very difficult to read.”  
Bella was surprised. Why would he try anyway?  
When the bell finally rang, Edward rushed as swiftly and as gracefully as he had the week before. And, like the week before, she stared after him in amazement.  
She was distracted the rest of the day.  
It was drizzling when she walked to the parking lot. She got into her truck and waited for her sister.  
Evangeline walked to the parking lot with haste.  
“Hey, Angie!”  
She heard a female voice say. She gasped and stopped and looked around. She saw Alice Cullen was smiling at her. Angie quickly looked away and pressed on her old wounds. But nothing happened. She took a deep breath and quickly got in the truck.  
“You okay?” her sister asked.  
“Yeah, sorry,” she lied.  
Bella frowned but didn’t ask any more questions. She drove away from the school.  
“Edward Cullen talked to me today.”  
Angie looked up, surprised. “He did?”  
“Yeah.”  
“What did he say?”  
“He introduced himself…talked about the weather…he asked about you…”  
She frowned. “What did he want?”  
“I don’t know,” she shrugged. “He asked if we were close.”  
“Oh,” is all Angie could say. “Was he nice?”  
“He was,” Bella said, surprise clear in her voice.  
“And…that’s it?”  
“That’s it.”  
“I wonder what got into him last Monday…”  
“Me too,” Bella admitted.  
Angie wasn’t a happy person. She was different from the others and she always had been. She never had any close friends and she wasn’t close with her sister. There were some days, when she wasn’t tired or hungry and that nothing in particular ruined her mood, she could ignore other people’s thoughts. Some other days, she heard everything but she managed to ignore it. It was like being in a very noisy room, she couldn’t understand what people were really thinking. Worst days were when people were talking about her. She heard everything. When someone thought of her, she’d hear her name and see herself in that person’s eyes. Sometimes, what they were saying – or picturing – was hurtful and that was when she really needed to be able to stop it all. It was surprising that none of her new classmates had made fun of her in anyway, yet. She stayed discreet and people didn’t see her. That’s why they didn’t think of her. She figured it was the reason why she heard Alice Cullen calling her name in the parking lot. She wanted her to hear. But Angie was terrified of not being in control.  
The best way to make it all stop was pain.  
The next morning, Angie was ready to face the day. She wouldn’t be bothered by any voices. To Bella’s horror, the ground was covered with snow. She was careful on the road and drove very slowly, the last thing she wanted to do was to carve a path of destruction through Main Street. But she was distracted, she couldn’t stop thinking about Edward Cullen, as much as she wished she wouldn’t. The truck seemed to have no problem with the ice.  
When they got out of the truck at school, something silver caught Angie’s eyes.  
“What is that?” Angie asked her sister.  
Bella walked around the vehicle – carefully holding the side for support – to examine the tires. There were thin chains crisscrossed in diamond shapes around them. Angie smiled thinking of her father who must have gotten up who knows how early to put snow chains on the truck. Her mother would have never thought about it. Bella’s throat felt suddenly tight. She wasn’t used to being taken care of, and Charlie’s unspoken concern caught her by surprise.  
“Angie!”  
Angie jumped, startled once again by Alice Cullen’s voice. But this time was different. She wasn’t saying hello like the day before. There was clear panic in her voice.  
Followed an odd sound. It was a high-pitched screech, and it was fast becoming painfully loud. The two sisters looked up, startled. They saw Alice and Edward Cullen standing four cars down from them, staring at them in horror. Then, they saw the van that was skidding, tired locked and squealing against the brakes, spinning wildly across the ice of the parking lot. It was going to hit the back corner of the red truck and Bella and Angie were standing between them.


	4. Exposed Secret

Angie’s head was about to explode.  
The voices were getting louder and louder. People were calling her name, screaming, picturing what was going to happen. As all the images struck her, she saw all the different ways she was going to die. She felt like she was going to pass out.  
Something hit both girls, hard, but not from the direction they were expecting. Bella’s head cracked against the icy blacktop, and she felt something solid and cold pinning her to the ground. She was lying on the pavement behind the tan car she had parked next to. A low oath made her aware that someone else than her sister was with her, and the voice was impossible not to recognize. Two long, white hands shot out protectively in front of her, and the van shuddered to a stop a foot from her face, the large hands leaving a deep dent in the side of the van’s body.  
At the same time, Angie felt two hands on her arms. It all happened very fast. She was lifted off her feet and pulled away from the danger. A second later, she was sitting on the ground, unharmed and breathless. She looked up to see Alice Cullen crouched down just in front of her, a worried look on her face.  
Angie was speechless. She was feeling the panic of all the people in the parking lot. All the noise, the real screams and the voices in her head, gave her a strong headache. She couldn’t tell anything apart. Nothing was clear, nothing made sense.  
But out of all the different emotions overwhelming her she discerned another sensation; a strange, and unusual feeling. It reminded her of what Edward had felt in the reception the week before; frustration, restraint and, above all else, hunger. She turned her head to the right to see Edward holding her sister protectively.  
As his own feelings echoed through Angie’s mind, his attention fell on her. Confusion was clear on her face. She could feel how hard it was for him to be around Bella, but she couldn’t understand why.  
“Are you all right?” Alice asked.  
Angie turned her attention back to Alice. She breathed out, both relieved and shocked.  
“Bella? Are you alright?” Edward asked. He sounded frantic.  
“I’m fine,” she answered. She quickly looked up to make sure her sister was safe. That’s when she saw Alice.  
“Be careful,” Edward warned her when she tried to sit up. “I think you hit your head pretty hard.”  
”Are you okay?” Bella asked her sister, ignoring Edward.  
Angie nodded wordlessly.  
“Ow,” Bella suddenly said, surprised. She became aware of a throbbing ache centered above her left ear.  
“That’s what I thought,” Edward sighed.  
“How in the…” she started to say. “How did you two get over here so fast?”  
“We were standing right next to you, Bella,” Edward said in a serious tone. The lie obvious to Angie.  
Bella sat up, Edward released his hold around her waist and slid as far from her as he could in the limited space. They were trapped between the three cars.  
Bella looked at his concerned, innocent expression and she was disoriented again by the force of his gold-colored eyes. For a second, she completely forgot her question. The crowd of people shouting at them made it difficult for her to focus.  
“Don’t move,” someone instructed.  
“Get Dean out of the van!” someone else shouted.  
Bella tried to get up but Edward stopped her.  
“Just stay put for now.”  
“But it’s cold,” she complained. Edward chuckled.  
“You were over there,” she suddenly remembered, and his chuckle stopped short. “You were by your car,” she said, looking at Alice and then back at Edward.  
His expression turned hard. “No, I wasn’t.”  
“I saw you,” she insisted.  
“Bella, we were standing right next to you, and we pulled you out of the way.”  
“No,” Bella couldn’t be convinced.  
The gold of his eyes blazed. “Please, Bella.”  
“Why?” she demanded.  
“Trust me,” he pleaded, his soft voice overwhelming.  
They could hear the sirens getting closer.  
“Will you promise to explain everything later?”  
“Fine,” he snapped, abruptly exasperated.  
“Fine,” she repeated angrily.  
Angie didn’t hear a word of their argument. She couldn’t hear anything anymore. Only a loud buzzing sound in her head. She was about to pass out when she tried, in her last second of consciousness, to press on her wounds as hard as she could. The pain made her cry out. Bella and both their saviors looked at her. The pain helped her focus on her quiet sister. And silence echoed in her head. Finally, the only voice she could hear was her own.  
“Angie?” Alice frowned.  
“Are you okay?” Bella asked.  
Angie nodded. She moved away from Alice and leaned back against the truck. She closed her eyes, still pressing on her cuts, focusing on the pain. Silence didn’t last long, it never did. She started to hear voices again. She focused on the two closest. Edward’s and Alice’s. The first one was angry. Angry at himself for putting his family in jeopardy. Angry at Bella for asking the questions he dreaded. Angry at her for smelling the way she did. Alice wasn’t angry. She was just a little worried. But she had this comforting feeling that no matter how hard it was going to be today, all will be better in the future.  
It took six EMTs and two teachers – Mr. Varner and Coach Clapp – to shift the van far enough away to bring the stretchers in. Alice and Edward vehemently refused theirs. Bella tried to do the same but Edward blabbered she had hit her head and probably had a concussion. Angie was too weak and too much in shock to protest in anyway.  
“Did you hurt your wrist?” an EMT asked Angie.  
“No,” she said. She grabbed onto the end of her sleeves and looked away.  
“She always does that,” Bella told him. The EMT nodded and walked away.  
It looked like the entire school was there, watching soberly as they loaded the two sisters in the back of the ambulances. Edward and Alice got to ride in the front, which infuriated Bella.  
To make matters worse, Charlie arrived before they were taken to the hospital.  
“Angie!” he yelled in panic when he recognized her on the stretcher.  
She jumped, startled, his screaming would only make her headache worse.  
“I’m fine, Dad,” she said, her voice weak. “Bella is the one who hurt her head.”  
Bella gave an angry look to her sister.  
“Are you okay,” Charlie asked his eldest.  
“I’m fine,” she mumbled. He turned to the closest EMT for a second opinion.  
Bella spotted the rest of Alice and Edward’s siblings, looking on from the distance, with expressions that ranged from disapproval to fury but held no hint of concern for their siblings’ safety.  
Bella tried to think of a logical solution that could explain what she had just witnessed – a solution that excluded the assumption that she was insane. She kept glancing at her sister, wondering why she wasn’t asking the same questions.  
Angie couldn’t be thinking about it. She had to stay focus or the voices would take over her mind.  
Once in the hospital, Bella was surprised and infuriated that Edward and Alice hadn’t been compelled to be checked out by a doctor. The two sisters were put in a small room filled with beds separated by pastel-patterned curtains. Angie was on the bed to her sister’s left. She enjoyed the silence of the room. There was only one nurse with them and she was busy doing her job.  
But after she was done examining the girls, another stretcher was brought to the bed next to Bella’s.  
Angie recognized Dean from her Trigonometry class beneath the bloodstained bandages wrapped tightly around his head. He looked a hundred times worse than she or Bella felt. But he was staring anxiously at them.  
“I’m so sorry!” he kept repeating.  
“We’re fine,” Bella assured him. She felt like she should be angry at him, he had almost killed her and her sister, but she wasn’t. She was just annoyed he wouldn’t stop apologizing.  
“I thought I was going to kill you! I was going too fast, and I hit the ice wrong…”  
“Don’t worry about it; you missed us.”  
“How did you get out of the way so fast? You were there, and then you were gone…”  
“Umm…Edward and Alice pulled us out of the way.”  
He looked confused. “Who?”  
“Edward and Alice Cullen – they were standing next to us.” Bella had always been a bad liar. She didn’t sound convincing at all.  
“The Cullens? I didn’t see them…wow, it was all so fast I guess…Are they okay?”  
“I think so. They’re here somewhere, but they didn’t make them use a stretcher.”  
Dean had confirmed Bella’s doubts. He hadn’t seen them either.  
Angie was left alone with Dean when they wheeled Bella away, to X-ray her head. He kept apologizing no matter how many times she would tell him to stop. Her fading headache came back. She had to press on her cuts again to chase Dean’s guilt away from her head. They had given him medication for the pain which made it easier for Angie to block his thoughts.  
When Bella came back, she was told that she was fine and that her X-rays looked good but when she asked if they could leave, the nurse told her they had to talk to a doctor first. So they were trapped in the hospital, waiting, harassed by Dean’s constant apologies and promises to make it up to both of them.  
Angie couldn’t bear it anymore, she took her iPod out of her bag and put her headphones on. She turned the volume up so she couldn’t hear Dean anymore. She sat on the bed, cross legged, and took out her notebook and started drawing.  
Bella laid down on her bed and closed her eyes in an attempt to ignore Dean, who kept a remorseful mumbling.  
“Is she sleeping?” a musical voice asked. Bella’s eyes flew open.  
Edward was standing at the foot of her bed, smirking. Bella glared at him.  
“Hey, Edward, I’m really sorry…” Dean began. Edward lifted a hand to stop him.  
“No blood, no foul,” he said, flashing his brilliant teeth. He moved to sit on the edge of Dean’s bed, facing Bella. He smirked again.  
“So, what’s the verdict?” he asked, glancing at Angie.  
“There’s nothing wrong with us at all, but they won’t let us go,” she complained. “How come you aren’t strapped to a gurney like the rest of us?”  
“It’s all about who you know,” he answered.  
Then a doctor walked in the room and Bella’s mouth fell open. He was young, he was blond, he was pale and he was handsomer than any movie star she had ever seen. From her father’s description, this had to be Edward’s father.  
“I heard the Chief’s daughters were here,” he said with a bright smile.  
A strong and painful sensation abruptly struck Angie. She looked up and saw Edward, sitting on Dean’s bed, and a doctor, whom she instantly knew to be his father, standing at the foot of her sister’s bed. She quickly stopped the music and removed her headphones. The sensation instantly became stronger. She felt it from both Dr. Cullen and Edward. Though Edward was only echoing what his father was feeling.  
It was a similar sensation like the one she had sensed from Edward in the reception on their first day. It resembled what Edward would feel every time he was near Bella. The call of a dangerous, insatiable hunger.  
The most exquisite, the most savory scent hit Dr. Cullen. As if he was starving and he was smelling food for the first time in days. He discerned the caressing smell of vanilla off Angie’s skin and the tempting fragrance of cherry off her hair. She smelled like dessert. But under these artificial, yet delicious smells, was the strong smell of sugar. It was like being in a room filled with candy.  
She gasped as fear seized her. It was obvious Dr. Cullen had more restraint than his son. When all Edward had been able to do was panic and run as far away from Bella as possible, Dr. Cullen stopped breathing and tried to focus on anything else than her scent. He picked up the documents on the table next to Bella’s bed where the nurse had left the X-rays.  
“So, Miss Swan,” Dr. Cullen said in a remarkably appealing voice, “how are you feeling?”  
“I’m fine.”  
“You X-rays look good,” he said. “Does your head hurt? Edward said you hit it pretty hard.”  
“It’s fine,” she repeated with a sigh, throwing a quick scowl toward Edward. The doctor’s cool fingers probed lightly along her skull. He noticed when she winced.  
“Tender?” he asked.  
“Not really.”  
Dr. Cullen nodded.  
Angie stared at him, stunned and confused. She could hear him battle in his mind. Battle over her. Over her blood. Her overwhelming sweet and sugary blood. His voice didn’t betray him. If she hadn’t been able to read his mind she would have never known how hard it was for him at this moment.  
“Evangeline,” he said, looking through the clipboard.  
“Angie,” it took her a second to correct him.  
“Well, Angie, looks like you were very lucky,” he said, keeping his eyes on the clipboard. “How do you feel?”  
“Good,” she eventually managed to say in a murmur. It wasn’t true but she didn’t even know how she felt anymore.  
“She has a headache,” Edward said. Bella frowned. She looked up at him but he was looking away. How would he know that?  
“Really? How bad is it?”  
A thought crossed his mind, was she the telepath his children had told him about? He looked up from the papers to meet her eyes. He saw she was terrified but she could only see curiosity on his face. What she was seeing and what she was hearing were two very different things.  
“Pretty bad,” she answered in a whisper, her blue eyes trapped in his beautiful gold ones.  
He stayed quiet for a moment, staring at her. She could see in his eyes now that it was harder and harder for him to ignore the smell. Her smell. It was pure perfection. Delicious and appealing. He could say the same about what he was seeing. He tried to remember if he had ever seen anyone more beautiful than Angie in his long life. His thoughts made her blush like never before. She looked away as she saw herself turn red through his eyes.  
Bella watched as they silently looked at each other. She had never been more uncomfortable. She arched an eyebrow, more confused than ever, when she saw her sister turn bright red.  
Something became clearer to Angie. It was a thought she hadn’t noticed before yet she had a feeling it had always been there; he was in control. He was strong enough to resist the appeal of her blood, no matter how good it smelled, no matter how bad he wanted to taste it.  
The doctor cleared his throat. “You might experience some post-traumatic stress but your vitals look good,” he said. “Alice said you didn’t fall. I think you should be fine,” he smiled. He looked sincere.  
She was too confused to smile back. She couldn’t understand anything she was hearing from him. His thoughts, his feelings, his thirst didn’t make any sense to her.  
“Did you hurt your wrist?” he asked, looking at her hands. She had been pressing on her wounds as hard as she could but it was barely working. It was like he was screaming at her that he wanted nothing more than to dig his teeth into her neck. She grabbed onto the end of her sleeves and shook her head.  
“No.”  
“I noticed you keep rubbing them,” he said.  
“She always does that,” Bella said.  
“All right,” Dr. Cullen nodded. “Take some pain medicine for your headache,” he suggested. “Your father is in the waiting room – you can go home with him now,” he said. “But come back if you feel dizzy or have trouble with your eyesight at all,” he told Bella.  
“Can I go back to school?” she asked.  
“Maybe you should take it easy today,” he said. “Both of you,” he glanced at Angie who thought her shoes were more interesting than the handsome doctor.  
Bella glanced at Edward. “Does he get to go to school?”  
“Someone has to spread the good news that we survived,” he said smugly.  
“Actually,” Dr. Cullen corrected, “most of the school seems to be in the waiting room.”  
“Oh no,” Bella moaned, covering her face with her hands.  
Dr. Cullen raised his eyebrows. “Do you want to stay?”  
“No, no!” Bella insisted, throwing her legs over the side of the bed and hopping down quickly. She staggered and Dr. Cullen caught her. He looked concerned.  
“She’s fine,” Angie said. She put her things back in her bag quickly before she got off the bed. Dr. Cullen looked up at her. Her voice was like music to him. “She has terrible balance,” she explained. She couldn’t take the risk of having to stay in the hospital any longer. Bella rolled her eyes, annoyed at her blabbering little sister.  
Dr. Cullen nodded and looked away, suddenly occupied with the papers in front of him. Angie could see through him, he was trying to focus on anything else but her. “I’m afraid that you’ll have to stay with us just a little bit longer,” he said to Dean, and began checking his cuts.  
As soon as the doctor’s back was turned, Bella moved to Edward’s side.  
“Can I talk to you for a minute?” she hissed under her breath. He took a step back from her, his jaw suddenly clenched.  
“Your father is waiting for you,” he said through his teeth.  
“I’d like to speak with you alone, if you don’t mind,” Bella pressed.  
He glared, and then turned his back and walked away. Bella took her sister’s hand and dragged her out of the room.  
Angie looked back at Dr. Cullen. He glanced at her. Their eyes met for a brief moment. She saw worry in his golden eyes. He gave her a small smile he wanted reassuring. Angie wasn’t looking where she was going and her sister almost led her into a wall. She was sure she heard the doctor laugh.  
The two sisters nearly had to run to keep up with Edward. As soon as they turned the corner into a short hallway, he spun around to face them.  
“What do you want?” he asked, sounding annoyed. His eyes were cold.  
His unfriendliness intimidated Bella. But Angie knew how he was really feeling. He was trying to protect her. He was afraid she’d figure out the truth. He was scared she’d tell people what she saw.  
“You owe me an explanation,” she reminded him.  
“I saved your life – I don’t owe you anything.”  
Bella flinched back from the resentment in his voice.  
“You promised,” she insisted.  
“Bella, you hit your head, you don’t know what you’re talking about.” His tone was cutting.  
Bella was fed up and glared defiantly at him. “There’s nothing wrong with my head.”  
He glared back. “What do you want from me?”  
“I want to know the truth,” she said.  
“What do you think happened?” he snapped.  
It came out in a rush. “All I know is that you and your sister weren’t anywhere near us – Dean didn’t see you, either, so don’t tell me I hit my head too hard. Angie didn’t hit her head at all,” she said, and then turned toward her sister. “What did you see, Angie?” she asked.  
“I…” Angie was taken aback by her angry tone. She didn’t know what to say. She was even more confused than her sister. Sure, she had more elements, and the biggest clue was right in front of her. Edward was craving for Bella’s blood just like Dr. Cullen was craving for hers. But the only explanation she could come up with was ridiculous and she was too shy and not confident enough in herself to say anything. “I don’t know,” she mumbled, looking down, trying to avoid Edward’s gaze. She let go of her sister’s hand and started pressing on her cuts again.  
“That van was going to crush us – and it didn’t, and your hands left dents in the side of it – and your sister pulled Angie away, she doesn’t even have a scratch on her, and you’re not hurt at all…” Bella could hear how crazy she sounded, and she couldn’t continue.  
Edward was staring at her incredulously. But his face was tense, defensive.  
“You think I stopped a van with my hands?” His tone questioned her sanity, but it only made her more suspicious. It was like a perfectly delivered line by a skilled actor. “Nobody will believe that, you know.”  
“I’m not going to tell anybody.” She said each word slowly, carefully controlling her anger.  
Surprise flitted across his face. “Then why does it matter?”  
“It matters to me,” she insisted.  
“Can’t you just thank me and get over it?”  
“Thank you.” She waited, fuming and expectant.  
“You’re not going to let it go, are you?”  
“No.”  
“In that case…I hope you enjoy disappointment,” he said before he walked away.  
Bella frowned and glared at his back, furious. After a minute of complete silence, she turned toward her sister, angry.  
“Aren’t you even just a little bit curious?” she yelled at her sister.  
Angie stared wordlessly at her with her round blue eyes. She didn’t find the courage to answer. She was afraid she’d make her angrier.  
Bella sighed, and then made her way to the exit at the end of the hallway. Angie didn’t follow her right away. She was afraid to go to the waiting room, filled of worried and gossiping students. But she had no other choice. She couldn’t hide in the hallway forever.  
The waiting room was worse than she’d feared. Dr. Cullen hadn’t lied, the entire school was there. She kept pressing on her wrist the whole time, but she couldn’t stop the voices in her head.  
“Are you okay?” her father asked.  
“Yes,” she lied, staring at her feet.  
“What did the doctor say?”  
“He said we were fine and we could go home,” Bella answered. “Let’s go,” she urged.  
Charlie led them to the glass doors of the exit. Bella waved sheepishly at her friends, hoping to convey that they didn’t need to worry anymore.  
They drove in silence. Bella was so wrapped up in her thoughts she forgot the presence of her father and sister. Angie had taken her headphones out. She was trying not to think, but failed to clear her head.  
The bizarre, yet powerful sensation she had felt from Dr. Cullen had stuck with her. She went through moments of total confusion followed by total certainty. The speed in which Alice had caught her and the strength with which Edward had stopped the van were proofs they weren’t human, and the smell of blood that tempted both Edward and his father gave her the final clue. There was no other explanation. Angie had no doubt about it.  
The good news was, now, she knew she wasn’t the strangest person on Earth. The bad news; it terrified her.


	5. 20 Questions

Vampires.  
There was no doubt possible. The Cullens were blood thirsty vampires.  
When Angie came back home from the hospital, she went directly to her bedroom, and she had been lying on her bed ever since.  
Charlie stayed with his daughters for the rest of the day. His worry was getting on Bella’s nerves. He had blabbered to their mother about the accident, and Renée was in hysterics. It hadn’t been easy to calm her down. Bella had to tell her at least thirty times that they were okay. Her mother begged her to come home with her sister but her pleas were easier to resist than Bella would have thought. She was consumed by the mystery Edward represented. And more than a little obsessed with Edward himself. She felt ridiculous and very stupid. She wasn’t as eager to escape Forks as she used to be.  
Charlie kept walking up and down the stairs to check on Angie. Every time he would take a look, she would pretend to be asleep. She didn’t want to talk to him, or to anyone. She had too many things going on in her mind. She felt like she had just woken up in a brand new world, a world she didn’t know anything about.  
The more Angie thought about the Cullens, the more confused she was. They didn’t look scary. She and her sister would be dead if it weren’t for Edward and Alice. Edward might crave for Bella’s blood but he didn’t want to harm her. Dr. Cullen might have been attracted to Angie’s blood but he never once thought about hurting her in anyway. All Edward and his father had tried to do was fight off their nature and forget that part of them.  
Angie didn’t know what to do. Should she tell her sister? She’d have to tell her everything, including her own secret.  
Night came, but Angie couldn’t fall asleep. Every time she closed her eyes, pictures of the morning’s event came back to her. Angie had a new unanswered question every two minutes, and she would never have the courage to ask them. She eventually fell asleep an hour after midnight.  
When she woke up, Angie was breathless and sweating. She could have stayed in bed for one more hour but she was too shaken up. She rushed to the bathroom to take a shower and wash the nightmare away.  
As the cold water was pouring on her body, flashes of her dream came back to her. She was in a dark place, alone, and it was loud. She was surrounded by hundreds of people with no faces, they weren’t saying anything, but it was so loud. She spotted Edward in the crowd, and the voices started to stop. He waved at her, and turned around. She tried to follow him but he disappeared. When she turned back, the crowd was gone. It had been replaced by the Cullens. They were just standing there, in a bright light. They looked like angels. It was suddenly so quiet. But the silence was broken by the screeching sound of tires. Angie saw Dean’s van coming right at her. But like the previous morning, she was pulled away. But it wasn’t Alice this time who saved her. It was Dr. Cullen.  
Angie was staring at her reflection in the mirror, a towel wrapped around her wet body. She looked horrible. She looked down at her wrists and grazed her scars with her thumb. She sighed, before she continued her morning routine.  
Charlie was late for work. He wanted to make sure his daughters were fine before they went back to school. After having told him ten times that they were okay, Chief Swan finally left.  
It wasn’t as cold as the day before. The roads weren’t as dangerous. The drive to the school was quiet. Angie apprehended what was to come. She was certain the entire school was waiting for them, to ask them how they were feeling, even though all they really wanted to know was the sordid details of what really happened.  
When they arrived in the parking lot, everybody was staring at the red truck. Angie could already hear them replaying the incident in their head. Every picture was different. None was right. Everyone had their own memories and interpretation of what had happened. Both girls sighed but stayed silent. They hadn’t said a word to each other since the hospital. Bella was angry at her sister for not being more curious. And Angie just didn’t like to lie.  
Angie had her headphones ready. She made sure the music was playing loud enough to block the voices before she got out of the truck. She pulled up the hood of her black jacket, hiding her face as best she could, and looked down so she wouldn’t meet anyone’s gaze. Her strategy worked. She walked through the crowd of curious students, and nobody stopped her. Everyone was focused on Bella.  
When Angie stepped into the hall of the school, she ran into someone. But it felt like she had just hit a wall. She was startled when she felt two small hands on her arms, confirming she had indeed walked into another person.  
She quickly looked up, and saw Alice Cullen was standing right in front of her, smiling. Angie immediately took a step back. But Alice didn’t look threatening. Angie saw her lips were moving but she couldn’t hear anything. She ran a hand over her head, pulled her hood down, and removed her headphones.  
“What?”  
Alice laughed. It was one of the most beautiful sounds Angie had ever heard.  
“I said, “Hi. How are you?”.” She had a crystalline voice, as if she sang every word she said.  
Angie didn’t know what to say. She wasn’t expecting Alice to come to her. She was planning on avoiding her and her siblings for the rest of her life.  
Every students around them were staring, whispering, gossiping. “Is that Alice Cullen?” one student said. “Who is she talking to?” another one thought.  
“Uh… I’m… I’m fine,” Angie replied shyly, trying to ignore the voices. “Thank you,” she added, when she realized she had never thanked her for saving her life.  
Alice closed her eyes, tilted her head to the side, and smiled. She looked like a character from a Japanese anime. She was small, about Angie’s height, she was unhealthily thin, she had big shining golden eyes, and a big bright smile.  
“Don’t worry about it,” she said, spinning gracefully around to Angie’s right side. She slid her left hand under Angie’s right arm, and started to walk.  
Angie was surprised, but followed. She didn’t have any choice, Alice was holding her painlessly tight.  
“Carlisle wanted me to talk to you,” she said.  
Angie frowned, and looked up, confused.  
Alice laughed. “My Dad, silly. Dr. Carlisle Cullen?”  
“Oh.” Angie’s heart jumped in her chest; what could he possibly have to say to her?  
“He wants to apologize if he scared you. It wasn’t his intention.”  
Angie raised her eyebrows, she wasn’t expecting an apology. She wished Alice would let go of her arm so she could press on her wrist and stop the voices. The hallway was filled with surprised and curious eyes. Angie was too busy trying to stop the voices to focus on an answer.  
“It’s okay,” she merely said in a whisper.  
“You must have plenty of questions,” Alice continued. “Edward said that you might already know.”  
Angie hesitated. What if she got it all wrong?  
“I’m not gonna say anything,” she said. Maybe Alice and her family were just worried she would tell their secret.  
Alice looked down at her, surprised and amused. “I know,” she smiled. “I just wondered how much you knew.”  
“I… have an idea… Only one explanation that makes sense…” Angie admitted, looking at the ground.  
Finally, she heard it. The word. It echoed in Alice’s mind, as if to destroy any doubt Angie could have had. Or any hope.  
Alice stopped in the middle of the hallway, let go of Angie’s arm, and placed herself in front of her. Angie immediately started pressing on her wounds, like a reflex.  
“And… have you told your sister?” she asked in a serious tone, worried.  
“No,” she quickly answered.  
“Why not?” Alice asked, both surprised and relieved. “Are you worried she won’t believe you?”  
Angie sighed and looked down. “I think she would, but… she’d ask me how I know.”  
“Oh,” Alice said, as she realized. “She doesn’t know.”  
“I never told her.”  
“Why not?”  
Angie shrugged and looked away. “It’s complicated.”  
“Have you ever told anyone?” Alice asked.  
Angie frowned. “Sure,” she said sarcastically. “Hey, I’m Angie. I can hear all your creepy thoughts. Wanna be friends?”  
Alice laughed. “I would be more subtle.”  
“It’d probably be better,” Angie agreed with a chuckle.  
Alice took back Angie’s arm and started walking again.  
“So, do you?” she asked. “Wanna be friends, I mean.”  
Angie wasn’t sure she heard right.  
“Why would you want to be friends with me?” she asked.  
Alice chuckled. “Why wouldn’t I?” Angie wasn’t sure how to answer. She didn’t want to sound rude. Alice saw she was trying to find a good way to say what she meant and decided to help her, “I’m just making the inevitable happen,” she said.  
Angie frowned. “You and I being friends is inevitable?” she asked.  
“Yes. Just like your sister finding out about us is inevitable too. It’s just a matter of how and when.”  
“How would you know that?” Angie asked.  
“I’ll tell you soon, but not here,” Alice smiled. “We need to go to class,” she sighed, and released Angie’s arm.  
“Alice, wait,” Angie stopped her. “Can I… ask you a question?”  
“Of course!”  
“Why…” she hesitated. “Why is Bella… so special to Edward?”  
Alice smiled. “And why is Carlisle more sensitive to you than to others?” Alice asked the real question.  
Angie blushed, and looked away, but nodded.  
“We don’t know,” she shrugged. “We have our theories though…” she said.  
“What theories?”  
“I don’t think I’m the one who should tell you,” Alice chuckled.  
Angie frowned, now very interested. “Why not?”  
“You’ll see,” she smiled. “Was it the only question you had?” she asked, amused.  
“I have about a billion more.”  
Alice laughed. “I’ll find you later, okay?”  
Angie nodded. She watched Alice walk away. She was so graceful, she looked like she was dancing.  
Five minutes before, Angie wanted nothing to do with the Cullens. Now, she was friends with a vampire, and she couldn’t wait but see Alice Cullen again.  
“Was that Alice Cullen?” a quiet voice suddenly asked behind Angie’s back.  
Angie turned around to face Emily. She looked stunned and curious.  
“Yeah,” Angie nodded.  
“What did she want?”  
“Uh,” Angie didn’t like to lie and she wasn’t good at it. “She just wanted to know if I was okay,” she said, it wasn’t a complete lie, “she was with me yesterday morning.”  
“Oh,” Emily said. Angie read in her thoughts that she believed her, as strange as it was. “The Cullens never talk to anybody.”  
Angie shrugged, hoping Emily would let it go. “Come on, we’ll be late for class.”  
Angie wondered all morning about the theories the Cullens might have. She wasn’t anywhere near the truth. She was too focused on her own thoughts, she didn’t notice she had no other voices in her head but hers.  
At lunch, she was sitting alone in the cafeteria, and waiting for Emily to join her. As she was staring at her plate, she wondered if she smelled differently because of what she ate.  
When someone came to sit in front of her, she thought it was Emily, at first, but when a second plate was put down on the table, she looked up and saw Alice had joined her, with Jasper.  
“Hey, do you mind if we sit with you?” Alice asked, smiling.  
Angie was surprised, she shook her head and let them sit with her. She hadn’t noticed the entire cafeteria was silent, her head was filled with curious voices.  
“Angie, this is Jasper. Jasper, this is Angie,” Alice said in a happy tone.  
“Hello,” Jasper said in a quiet voice, he looked like he was in pain. Angie could hear the battle that he was fighting in his mind. It was like every single person who was in the cafeteria was screaming at him to eat them. His siblings had better control over their nature than he did, and Angie wondered why it was harder for him than for Alice to be around humans.  
“H– hi,” Angie stuttered, ill at ease.  
“It’s okay, Jasper,” Alice told him and gave him a big smile. She was like his own personal cheerleader.  
Angie quickly looked up at the Cullens’s usual table. She first saw Edward, who nodded at her, then Emmett and Rosalie. Emmett was talking to his girlfriend who looked furious. She gave an angry look to Angie who immediately looked away.  
“Don’t worry about Rosalie,” Alice said. “She’ll come around.”  
Alice’s words echoed in the blonde’s mind, surprising Angie.  
“Can she read minds too?” Angie asked.  
Both Jasper and Alice looked surprised.  
“No,” Alice said. “Why?”  
“She can hear us,” Angie replied.  
Jasper smiled, amused.  
“Yeah,” Alice chuckled. “Many of our senses are amplified.”  
“Oh,” she said. She looked up at the table, Emmett and Edward seemed amused, but Rosalie didn’t find it funny.  
“You said you had a billion questions,” Alice said. “What do you want to know?”  
Angie stared at her for a moment. She had so many questions she didn’t know where to start.  
“Are you, like…immortal?” she whispered the end, careful not to let anyone hear.  
Alice smiled. “Yes.”  
Angie was expecting a positive answer. The next obvious question was also an extremely rude one, and she chose not to ask it.  
“Ok,” she whispered. She let it sink in. “And…you don’t eat?” she asked, it was more of an observation than a question.  
“No,” Alice answered.  
“What happens if you do?”  
Alice thought about it for a second. “It would be like eating paper, or dirt…”  
Angie was afraid to ask her next question. She didn’t want to upset them. “And…if you don’t mind me asking,” she started, “what do you eat?”  
Alice sighed. She was uncomfortable, she didn’t want to scare Angie. The telepath wondered why. Why would they bother answering her questions? Why would Alice want to be her friend at all?  
“Well… Our kind usually feeds on… human blood,” she said. She picked every word very carefully. “But we don’t,” she quickly added, taking Jasper’s hand in hers.  
Angie was both relieved and curious. “How do you…”  
“Animals,” Alice cut her off.  
“Oh,” Angie said. It made sense. She felt the couple was uncomfortable, so she decided to change the subject. “Why can I… and Edward, why can we read other people’s minds?”  
“We’re not sure,” Alice replied. “We never met a human with your abilities before.”  
Angie frowned. “What do you mean?”  
“We thought only we could have… this kind of abilities.”  
“What do you mean?” Angie repeated, confused. “Does every… vampire,” she whispered, “have… a gift?”  
“Not all of us,” Alice shook her head. “But some of us do.”  
“Do you?” Angie asked.  
“Jasper and I do,” she nodded.  
“But it’s not mind reading?”  
“It’s not mind reading,” Alice chuckled.  
Angie stared at her, fascinated, and not at all scared anymore. “What can you do?”  
Alice grinned, and Jasper smiled, amused.  
“Sometimes, I have visions. Of the future.”  
“You can see the future?” Angie echoed, astonished.  
Alice laughed. “Something like that,” she nodded.  
“Is that how you knew that… we were gonna be friends?”  
“Yes,” Alice nodded.  
It took Angie a moment to make sense of the new information.  
“Are you okay?” Alice asked, she was starting to get worried.  
Angie nodded. “What can you do?” she asked Jasper.  
“Jasper can manipulate other people’s emotions,” Alice answered.  
“Cool,” Angie breathed out, amazed. “I can’t do that, but I can make people do stuffs,” she told them. She had never told anyone before. It felt good not to have to hide anymore.  
“Like compulsion?” Alice asked, surprised.  
“Yeah,” Angie nodded. “I rarely do it though.”  
“We thought you could only read minds,” Alice told her.  
Angie shook her head. “I can feel what people feel, hear what people think and I can also make them think stuffs… But I don’t think I can make them feel a certain way.”  
“Interesting,” Jasper said.  
“How am I feeling right now?” Alice asked, amused.  
Angie lost her smile. She looked down at her hands. She was still pressing on her cuts. “I try not to… use my abilities,” she admitted.  
“Why not?” Alice asked, curious.  
Angie shrugged. “It hurts,” she merely answered.  
“Interesting,” Jasper said again. Angie frowned. She failed to see what was so interesting.  
“Maybe you should learn how to control them,” Alice said. “Rather than try to stop it all.”  
“I’ve been trying my whole life to control it. It’s too hard.”  
“Maybe I could help with that.”  
Angie sighed. “You should tell Edward not to eavesdrop, it’s rude.”  
Both Alice and Jasper laughed.  
“He’s a mind reader,” Alice chuckled. “What did you expect?”  
Angie smiled and couldn’t help but chuckle. She sighed again, and looked around. People were still staring at them. She spotted her sister at a table in the middle of the cafeteria, she was staring too. She looked curious and angry.  
“Is Edward… gonna tell Bella?” she asked next, looking back at Alice.  
“He doesn’t want to,” she sighed.  
“But you said she’ll find out.”  
“She will,” Alice nodded. “I just don’t know when or how… Are you going to tell her?” Alice asked, worried.  
“When she finds out the truth… and learns that I knew but didn’t tell her… she’ll hate me. But… I think… it’s not my secret to reveal,” Angie said, and turned her head toward Edward. He rolled his eyes, uncomfortable.  
In the multitude of voices Angie was hearing, one was constantly imagining ways Bella and Angie would die, and how it would affect their lives. Angie sighed.  
“Your sister has some morbid thoughts,” she said, which amused Edward. “Is she doing it on purpose? To scare me?”  
“Rosalie is just worried,” Alice said.  
“I’m not going to tell anyone,” Angie said, looking at the blonde vampire. Rosalie stared back at her. Her cold gaze made Angie shiver and look away.  
“She knows that,” Alice told her. “She’s just worried…”  
“That somehow I’ll end up killed?” Angie cut her off.  
“We’re vampires,” Alice reminded her. “We’re not the best people for you to be friends with.”  
“Hey, you asked me to be your friend,” Angie joked.  
Alice laughed. “I know. But she didn’t.”  
“She disapproves.”  
“She’ll come around,” Alice repeated. “Was that all the questions you had?”  
“Not even close,” Angie chuckled.  
Alice looked up at the cafeteria’s clock. “There’s still time.”  
Angie thought for a moment.  
“What about the sun?”  
“We have to avoid it. But it doesn’t hurt.”  
“Why do you have to avoid it?” Angie asked.  
“I’ll show you one day.”  
Angie sighed, disappointed. Alice and Jasper chuckled.  
“You don’t turn into bats, do you?” she joked.  
“No,” Alice laughed. “We don’t sleep in coffins either. We don’t sleep at all, actually.”  
“Never?” Angie asked stunned.  
“Never,” Alice shook her head.  
“Garlic?”  
“Myth.”  
“Mirrors?”  
“Do you think Edward’s hair would look like that if he couldn’t see himself in a mirror?” Alice mocked. Edward growled, which made his siblings laugh even more.  
“Why move to Forks?” Angie asked next. “Is it because of the sun?”  
Alice nodded. “Mostly.”  
Angie had trouble focusing. Her headache was getting worse. The voices were getting louder and harder to push away. She would have been out of the cafeteria by now if it weren’t for Alice and all the answers she had.  
“You okay? Alice asked.  
“Yeah,” Angie lied. She pressed her thumb harder on her wrist but it didn’t help. She tried to focus on the voices for a minute, and tried to stop them, but failed.  
“Stop it.”  
Angie jumped, startled by Edward’s voice. He sat down to her left, he could see all the curious faces of the students in the cafeteria.  
“You can’t stop the voices,” he told her. “You will never be able to not hear them.”  
Angie started to tear up. It wasn’t exactly what she wanted to hear.  
“The only way you can control the voices is if you let them in.”  
“But there’re so many of them,” she said in a weak voice.  
“I know,” he nodded. “But once they’re inside your mind, you can choose to listen to them or not. It’s like… turning a TV on and you’re the one turning the volume up or down.”  
Angie wasn’t sure she understood. She stared at Edward for a moment, and then shook her head.  
“I can’t do that.”  
“Just let go of all the walls you built in your head and let the voices in. It’ll hurt at first, it’ll be very loud. But then, you will be in control.”  
Angie looked up at Alice. She didn’t know why, she thought maybe she could help.  
“He knows what he’s talking about,” she smiled.  
Angie took a deep breath. “I’m not sure I can do it.”  
“Trust me,” Edward said, and gave her a reassuring smile. “I tried to stop the voices at first too. I was going crazy. When I realized they’d never stop, I let go.”  
“Will I really be able to... not hear them?”  
“The only voice you will have in your head will be your own. You’ll have to focus to hear other people’s thoughts. You’ll never have to hear anything you don’t want ever again.”  
“That sounds nice,” she said with a small smile.  
“Come on!” Alice said. “You can do it!”  
Angie chuckled, nervous. She was scared but Edward’s promises were all she ever wanted to hear. Could it really be worse?  
She let go of her wrist and placed her hands on each side of her chair. She took a deep breath before she closed her eyes and did as Edward told her, she let the voices in. She squeezed the edges of the chair as the voices were getting louder. She winced, and then let out a smothered cry only the Cullens heard.  
“Are you sure of what you’re doing?” Alice whispered to Edward.  
“It worked for me,” Edward nodded.  
“She’s human,” Alice said. “What if it doesn’t work?”  
“It’ll be fine,” Edward said. But in fact, he had the same worries than his sister.  
A minute passed. It was the longest minute of Angie’s life. The voices had never been louder. But as the seconds passed, the voices started to disappear until there were only whispers left. And in the next minute, the whispers disappeared as well.  
When Angie finally opened her eyes, she was panting. She stared thoughtlessly at the apple on her plate for a few seconds before she looked up and met Alice’s curious and worried eyes.  
“What are you hearing?” Edward asked.  
Angie took a deep breath. “Nothing,” she replied in a whisper.  
She breathed out a laugh, and a tear fell down her cheek, before it all went black.


	6. Peace and Quiet

When Angie came back to consciousness, it was so quiet she first thought she was at home, lying in her bed. But she quickly realized it felt nothing like it. The bed she was lying in didn’t feel familiar, nor was it comfortable, and besides, she was lying on her back; she always slept curled up on her side, safe from the rest of the world. It didn’t smell like home either. And she was still fully clothed, she even had her shoes on.  
Angie sighed.  
It didn't matter where she was; it was quiet. And Angie enjoyed the silence. Silence was safe. Painless. She didn't want to open her eyes, she didn't want the voices to come back. But she was aware of the noises around her. Small noises that she normally wouldn't pay attention to or just wouldn't hear them because it was too loud in her head. Noises like someone breathing or writing. You can tell which pen someone is using just by the noise it makes. Whoever was there with her, he or she was using what Angie imagined to be an expensive ballpoint pen. And his or her breathing was weird. Inconsistent. It didn't sound like they were out of breath. But more like they didn't need to breath as often as a normal human would.  
Angie slightly smiled.  
Could it be Alice? Angie didn't think so. If Alice were there with her she would be hearing her thoughts. So then, it must be Bella.  
But the question still remained. Where was she? And why was it so quiet? What was Bella writing and why was her breathing so strange?  
Only then, as she focused on the person that was with her, she realized it couldn't be her sister. There was a voice. She could hear it. It was faint at first but it became clearer as she tried to listen to it. It was the soft voice of a man.  
Angie frowned.  
She had heard it before. But the man wasn't talking to her. He wasn't talking at all. She could hear he was worried and waiting for her to wake up. He was starting to think that she was awake because her heart had just started to beat a little faster. He was peacefully listening to her heartbeat. The throbbing sound soothed him. It fascinated him. It was the most beautiful sound he had ever heard. It was like a symphony to his ears.  
But focusing on her heartbeat didn’t distract him from the enchanting call of her blood. The delectable fragrance was still mysteriously appealing. And he couldn’t ignore it.  
At that thought, Angie’s eyes instantly shot open. She immediately sat up and came face to face with a startled Dr. Cullen. The tall and handsome doctor was standing at the foot of her bed, he was leaning on a table, a silver pen in his hand. His pale skin, his blond perfect hair and his white coat made him look like an angel.  
“Are you okay?” he asked in a soft voice that didn’t hide his worry.  
Angie didn’t reply. She stared at him, confused and disoriented. She wasn’t hearing anything. His thoughts weren’t shouting at her like it had the day before.  
“Are you okay?” he repeated. He took a step forward and she immediately tried to move away. He stopped when he saw she was scared of him. Her reaction hurt him more than it should have. He slowly raised his hands. “I’m not going to hurt you.”  
Angie frowned. She carefully looked at him. She was starting to doubt his very presence. She looked around the room, it looked like she was in the hospital.  
“Wh… where…”  
“You’re in the hospital,” he said. His voice was gentle and calm.  
“No,” Angie shook her head. She couldn’t believe it.  
“You passed out an hour ago. In the cafeteria. Do you remember?”  
Angie kept shaking her head in disbelief. It was so quiet, this couldn’t be real. But then, she remembered. Alice, lunch, Edward… He said she would be in control. She took a deep breath as she remembered destroying the walls she had spent years building in her head. She also remembered letting the voices in.  
Two tears fell down her cheeks. “I can’t hear anything,” she breathed out.  
Carlisle smiled. “Yes,” he nodded. “Edward told me what happened. You probably passed out because of shock.”  
She looked up at him, hoping to see definite proof that she wasn’t dreaming. Her eyes fell on his hand and she shyly held her hand out to him. He was confused at first, but he quickly understood what she wanted. He took a step forward – careful not to scare her – and held his hand out, hoping his cold skin wouldn’t bother her.  
Angie slowly slid her hand in his. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath as she realized he was real.  
“You’re here,” she breathed out.  
“I assure you, you are not dreaming,” he smiled.  
“Oh my God,” she breathed out a laugh as she let herself fall back on to the bed. She brought her hands on her face as she started laughing harder and harder.  
Her laugh was contagious. He chuckled as he watched her, glad she didn’t have to live in pain anymore.  
“How close are we from people?” she asked.  
“Very close,” he answered.  
She giggled. The sound she made surprised her and made her laugh even more. She had never made a sound like that before.  
“I’m sorry,” she said, breathless, realizing she probably looked like a crazy person.  
“It’s okay,” he said. “I understand your reaction.”  
She slowly sat back up, she was still giggling, she couldn’t help herself. She wiped what she thought were tears of joy off her cheeks before she realized that she was crying.  
“This is totally normal,” he told her. “You’re just in shock.”  
Angie tried to take a deep breath but she was still laughing. She was overwhelmed with joy and relief. It was a weird sensation to be in someone’s company and not knowing what he was thinking.  
“Is my dad here?” Angie asked.  
“Yes, he’s waiting with your sister.”  
“Where’s Edward?”  
“In class. They wouldn’t have let him in the ambulance.”  
“Yeah, of course,” she said, a little disappointed.  
“Before I let you go,” he started to say. He sounded uncomfortable. “Edward told me about… how you tried to keep the voices away,” he continued.  
Angie rapidly lost her smile. She stopped laughing then. She quickly wiped off the rest of the tears off her cheeks before she grabbed onto the end of her sleeves and crossed her arms.  
“I just want to make sure that everything’s okay.”  
“It’s fine,” Angie said dryly, looking away.  
“I’d feel better if you’d just let me take a look.”  
“It’s fine,” she repeated, avoiding eye contact.  
“Angie,” he sighed. “As a doctor I can’t make you show me. But I would really feel better if I could just make sure that you’re okay.”  
She looked up and was surprised to see he was genuinely worried for her. Just like the day before, she got lost in his golden eyes. They seemed darker now. As she watched him with her big blue eyes, she wondered if her presence disturbed him. She thought back to what he was thinking a few minutes ago. He was just enjoying the sound of her heartbeat and the sweet smell of her blood. She knew it would only be natural to be scared – he was a vampire after all – but she didn’t know why and she couldn’t explain it, but she felt safe with him. She felt like she could trust him.  
She looked away, and sighed, before she nodded.  
“Thank you,” he said.  
He brought the table next to the bed. On it was everything he needed to take care of her wrists.  
“Don’t move,” he gently told her when she tried to turn toward him.  
She crossed her legs before he sat down on the edge of the bed. It took her a minute to uncross her arms.  
“Can I?” he asked, gesturing toward her left arm.  
It took her a few seconds but she eventually nodded. He gently took her arm and carefully brought her sleeve up to her elbow. He slowly removed the bandage she had changed before she left for school, and revealed her scarred skin. What he saw horrified him. It was worse than he had imagined. There were many scars from the beginning of her wrist to the middle of her forearm. Some of them looked very old. He passed his cold fingers on the longest one. Angie was so relieved she couldn’t hear what he was thinking.  
“Did you do this one this morning?” he asked as he passed his long fingers on the most recent cut.  
She looked, sighed, and nodded. “Yeah…” she said in a murmur.  
“Did you sterilize the blade?” he asked in a soft voice.  
“I always do.”  
He nodded. He soaked a cotton ball in alcohol and started to attend to her cuts. He was expecting her to react to the pain, but she didn’t flinch. She was used to it.  
“How long have you been doing that?” he asked. He was still looking at her wrist.  
“I don’t know…,” she said quietly. “A while.”  
“Have you ever talked to anyone about it?”  
“No.”  
“Do you think you’re going to do it again?”  
She didn’t reply right away. Her first instinct was to lie. But then she remembered: she didn’t need to anymore.  
“I don’t see why I would. Not anymore.”  
“Good,” he merely said.  
She turned her head and watched him bandage her wrist. She saw there was blood on the cotton ball he had used.  
“Doesn’t blood bother you?” she asked.  
He looked up at her for a second before he looked back at her arm.  
“I can resist it,” he said.  
Angie noticed his answer wasn’t a straight “no”. She hesitated before she asked her next question.  
“How do you do it?”  
He slightly smiled. “Years and years of practice.”  
“Yeah but…” Angie sighed, she didn’t know how to say it.  
“What is it?” he encouraged her.  
“Edward doesn’t have your restraint,” she said. “Not with Bella.”  
He nodded. “Bella’s blood is different to him.”  
“But why?” she asked. “Alice said you had theories. But she didn’t want to tell me.”  
“Alice has a theory,” he said. “Which she shared with us.”  
When he was finished with her left wrist, he brought her sleeve back down and held his hand out for her right arm. Angie brought her sleeve up and moved closer to him so that he could take a closer look.  
“What did she say?” she asked, looking up at him with her big round blue eyes. Carlisle stayed silent, which only made her more curious. “Is it that bad?” she tried to joke.  
Carlisle smiled, amused. “It’s not something easy to talk about. I wouldn’t want to scare you.”  
“It’s just a theory,” she shrugged, trying to sound convincing.  
He sighed. “Do you know how Alice met Jasper?” he asked.  
“No,” she shook her head, wondering how it was relevant.  
“Alice,” he sighed, hoping it wouldn’t be too hard on her. “She has a gift, just like you and Edward.”  
“Yeah, she can see the future. She told me.”  
Carlisle looked surprised. “Already?”  
“Yeah,” she nodded. “She told me about Jasper too.”  
“I see,” he frowned.  
“Shouldn’t she have?” she asked, afraid he was upset.  
“I’m just surprised you already know,” he smiled.  
“Does it bother you?”  
“What?”  
“That I know. About… what you are.”  
“It doesn’t bother me,” he said. “But you don’t seem… scared.”  
Angie shrugged. “You don’t seem threatening.”  
“You don’t think we’re dangerous?” Carlisle asked, he was hoping she would.  
“I know you are.”  
Her answer surprised him. He looked up and met with her beautiful blue eyes again.  
“Dangerous people aren’t necessarily threatening,” she said. “It depends on what they want.”  
“And what do you think we want?”  
“I know what you don’t want,” she said. “Alice said you didn’t… drink human blood.”  
“That’s true,” he nodded.  
“So… should I? Be scared, I mean.”  
Carlisle looked back at her wrist.  
“I don’t want to hurt you,” he said.  
“I know.”  
Carlisle smiled. “Did you hear it?”  
“Something like that,” she nodded. “Mostly, I felt it.”  
He frowned. “What do you mean?” he asked, looking up at her again.  
“I… the voices come with feelings,” she explained. “Yesterday, I felt that… well, you thought I smelled like candy,” she chuckled nervously.  
“I’m sorry.” He looked ashamed of himself.  
She shook her head. “I felt something from you,” she said. “Edward didn’t have that… with Bella. You know, people always have this one thought – sometimes it’s a memory – that makes them shiver, that reminds them not to do something, for example, someone would remember their mother screaming at them and so they wouldn’t take dessert at lunch in the cafeteria,” she said, hoping it made sense to him. “You had that. You have this one thought that reminds you of who you are and who you want to be and it keeps you from eating dessert,” she told him. “In that case, dessert being me,” she chuckled nervously, looking away. She paused before she asked, “does that make sense?”  
He nodded. “It does,” he whispered. He was stunned. She had just explained to him something he hadn’t understood yet.  
“So why… why is my blood so special to you?”  
Carlisle pressed his lips together and looked down.  
“Alice says it’s not about blood.”  
Angie was confused. “How can it not be?”  
“Alice was alone when she was turned. She doesn’t remember her human life. The first time she saw Jasper it was in a vision. She knew she had to find him. Not long after that, she saw me and found us. We’ve been together ever since,” he said.  
Angie gave him a confused look. She failed to see how it was relevant.  
“Alice says that she was meant to be with Jasper, just like Rosalie was meant to be with Emmett. And we were all meant to be a family.”  
“Like… soulmates?” she asked.  
Carlisle nodded. “Or the vampire version of it.”  
“Do you believe it’s true?”  
“I don’t know,” he said.  
“But… what does it have to do with… Bella and I?”  
“Alice saw you and your sister,” he said. “Before you arrived. At first, she didn’t think much of it. She assumed she had the vision as soon as you took the decision to move to Forks. It’s only when Edward met Bella that it started to make sense. And yesterday only confirmed her theory,” he said obviously uncomfortable.  
“… Which is…?” Angie wasn’t used to wait. Usually, the answers would just scream at her.  
Carlisle looked up, she was so close to him, it was unsettling. He wondered if it was wise to tell her. He was nervous about her reaction. He looked back down and finished the bandage.  
“That… Edward and Bella are… meant to be.”  
Angie’s mouth fell open. She blushed bright red, she was glad he wasn’t looking at her.  
“Do- does she have some kind of… I don’t know, proof?” she stuttered.  
“Not really,” he said as he got off the bed. He pushed the table away and started writing on her medical chart.  
An awkward silence settled in the room. They were both clearly uncomfortable. After a minute, she cleared her throat, and she jumped out of bed. But she moved too fast and got dizzy and almost fell. Carlisle caught her quickly. She immediately looked up at him. It surprised her how fast he got to her. She felt his hands on her waist as she was clinging to his arms. That’s when she noticed how strong he was. At this point, it was more than that. His skin was cold and hard, it was like being in the arms of a statue. Now that she was so close to him, she could perceive the faint smell of paper, ink and old books. It was a pleasant and comfortable smell.  
She was still smelling like candy to him. She was just like a walking cotton candy; fragile and deliciously appealing.  
She watched as his eyes turned dark. There was no voice in her head telling her he wasn’t going to harm her. No other voice than her own, which wasn’t very helpful. She got lost in his eyes again, and for a minute they just stood there, in each other’s arms, just silently wondering if Alice could be right.  
Angie was the one who stepped back first.  
“Thanks,” she breathed out as she looked down and moved away. She looked around the room but couldn’t find what she was looking for.  
“Do you need something?” he asked as he took a step back.  
“My bag.”  
“Your father has it.”  
“Oh,” she awkwardly said.  
“He’s been waiting for you.”  
“Yeah, I better go,” she whispered. She started to walk away but stopped once she reached the door. “Did you… tell him?”  
“About your wrists?” he asked. She looked down, and nodded. “No. I told him you were suffering from post-traumatic stress, from yesterday.”  
Angie took a deep breath, relieved. “Thank you.”  
He slightly smiled. “You’re welcome,” he nodded.  
She looked at him in silence for another thirty seconds before she shyly smiled and waved goodbye, opened the door and stepped out of the room.  
He watched her walk away and stood in the room alone for a few minutes, staring at the door through which she had just left. He could still smell her.  
He sighed.  
If there was something he had learnt living with Alice it was that she was always right.  
“Damn it, Alice.”  
//// Angie slowly walked down the hallway, lost deep in her thoughts. She grabbed onto the end of her sleeves, thinking about Alice’s theory. What did she know that could make it false? What did she know that could make it true? When she stepped in the waiting room, she had no clear answer. Her head was filled with questions and doubts.  
She saw her father was waiting with Bella near the exit. She felt bad to have worried him.  
“Dad.”  
Charlie immediately looked up. “Angie! How are you feeling?”  
“I’m good,” she smiled. And for the first time in a very long time, she wasn’t lying.  
“Dr. Cullen said you just needed to sleep,” he said.  
“Yeah,” Angie nodded. “I’ll feel much better after a good night of sleep,” she assured him.  
“Has he said anything else?” he asked.  
“Just that I needed some rest,” she lied. “We can go,” she told him.  
Charlie nodded. “Are you sure you’re okay?”  
“I’m great, dad,” she smiled. “I just had a really bad headache,” she said. “I’m so much better now.”  
“Okay,” he nodded, half convinced. He lifted her bag and carried it with him.  
Angie looked up at her sister. She looked concerned but also angry. They followed their father out of the hospital.  
“So what happened?” Bella whispered.  
Angie frowned. “What do you mean?”  
“Why did you really pass out?”  
“I told dad, I had a headache.”  
“Yeah, you told dad,” she repeated. “Now tell me.”  
Angie stared at her sister, wondering what she was going to do. She couldn’t tell her the truth. She was too much of a coward to do it alone.  
“Bella, I’m just tired,” she lied.  
Bella rolled her eyes, angry. “Edward didn’t even say a word to me today, and you’re having lunch with them!”  
“Alice wants to be friends.”  
Bella scoffed. “Well, did you ask your friend how she saved our lives?”  
Angie looked away, proving to her sister that she was indeed hiding something from her.  
“I can’t believe you,” she growled.  
“Bella,” Angie sighed. “If they do have a secret… Do you think I should be the one to tell you?”  
Bella glared at her sister. “So you do know?”  
“I didn’t say that,” Angie shook her head.  
“But you do! Tell me!”  
Angie was relieved she didn’t have the time to tell her anymore lies as they had reached the car. She quickly got in the back seat, but she knew Bella wasn’t going to give up. The drive back home was silent. Angie immediately got in her room without giving her sister the chance to ask her anymore questions.  
Angie closed the door behind her and let her bag fall on the floor. She leaned her back against the door, closed her eyes, and sighed.  
After a minute, she started laughing again. She felt so light, like she was on drugs. The voices were gone, and nothing else mattered. Vampires existed, who cared? It was finally quiet inside her head. A “years and years of practice” old vampire might be her soulmate, but it didn’t matter because the only voice she could hear now was her own.  
She let herself fall on to her bed, where she continued laughing. She laughed so hard it hurt. She couldn’t help herself. She laughed and cried for hours until she fell asleep, exhausted. She slept better than a baby.  
She started to dream around 4am after a peaceful rest. In her dream, she was surrounded by a crowd of people, just like in her previous dream, but it was different this time because it was so dark and silent. She could see they were all talking but she couldn’t hear anything. She spotted Alice in the crowd. She wasn’t talking, but she was smiling. She motioned Angie to follow her before she turned around and walked away. The farer away she was from the crowd, the brighter it became. When she finally reached Alice, she was with her siblings. She was standing next to Jasper, Emmett was with Rosalie and Edward was with Bella. They were just standing in the middle of an empty white room. There were no doors, no windows. When Angie turned around, she suddenly found herself in the hallways of the hospital. It was dark, quiet and empty. She walked down the hallway, it seemed so long. After a few minutes she spotted a light. She kept walking, and after another minute she saw the light came from a big window. There was someone standing there, just looking out the window. Angie could only see his back but she recognized his blond hair. He slightly turned his head, as if he had heard her coming. That’s when Angie woke up.  
She opened her eyes and brought her hands to her face. She was disoriented for a split second before she understood she had just had a dream. She sighed. It was the second time in two nights that she dreamt of them now. Of him. She looked up at the ceiling and sighed again.  
“Damn it, Alice.”


	7. Step By Step

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, hello, bonjour :)  
> I am so sorry I haven't been replying to your comments! For some reason I did not receive any notifications, normally I receive a email or something...  
> So, I just want to say thank you! It's very envouraging and I really hope you like this part!  
> Enjoy!

Carlisle Cullen couldn’t dream. But he didn’t need his subconscious to tell him what he already knew.  
He sat in his office, surrounded with old books and old paintings he collected over the years, and he thought, just like he had the night before. He thought about the day Rosalie came back from a hunt with Emmett, and how she begged him to turn him. He remembered how surprised he was. Rosalie never hid her disgust for what they were. But Emmett changed her. Just like she changed him. He remembered how relieved he felt when he saw them both happy together. He thought back to when he first met Alice. She was so cheerful. It didn’t take him long to understand it was just the way she was. It surprised him when she called his name for the first time. They had never met, and yet she knew so many things about him. Alice was easy to live with. It wasn’t a difficult add to the family. Even Jasper was sincere about becoming a “vegetarian”. Alice talked a lot. She knew many things. Things she wasn’t always supposed to know. Most of these things Carlisle called theories because it had never been proven. Not really. But the mate theory didn’t really need any more proof. Rosalie and Emmet, Alice and Jasper were meant to be, and even if there was no such thing as destiny, together they were the best version of themselves, and they were a family.  
Carlisle sat alone, thinking about the last two days, about how a sixteen years old teenager had possibly changed him forever. He was haunted by the memory of her fragrance. It stuck to him, never allowing him to forget how desirable she was. It was like a curse. He had spent his immortal life trying to stay away from humans, never getting close to anyone, making sure he would never hurt anyone, just to be told that the sweetest, most beautiful, most fragile human girl he had ever met belonged to him. And he belonged to her.  
From the very beginning of his second life, he believed unconditionally that he was damned, that he deserved to be thrown in Hell like the monster he was. He managed to find a way to live he could be proud of. Proud enough to make himself a family he loved. But even if he never admitted it, not to anyone, not even to himself, he was waiting. Waiting to find his Rosalie or his Alice. Someone to share eternity with.  
Was Angie the one? It seemed ridiculous to wonder. She was human. Any kind of relationship with her was impossible. And even if she really was the one, he had a duty to protect her. Alice couldn’t be right. But Alice was never wrong.  
Angie took him by surprise. He wasn’t expecting his other half to be human. It never occurred to him it was even a possibility. He was expecting someone that was already damned, someone like him. Not a pure and innocent young girl. What could he bring her but death, pain and misery? They had no chance at happiness. Not one.  
Carlisle listened as Edward left the house, just like he had the night before. He knew exactly where he was going, and he fought the urge to follow him.  
He thought back to the night before, when they were all arguing. It was the worst fight they ever had as a family. Rosalie, Emmett and Jasper wanted to leave. They didn’t want to take the risk to stay now that their secret had been exposed. Carlisle listened wordlessly as Alice and Edward argued against them. He knew it would be better if they left, it would be safer for everyone. But as his “children” yelled at each other, he couldn’t stop thinking about her. Her big blue eyes filled with terror, fascination and confusion. Her long brown hair falling on her chest, her rosy cheeks, and her small beating heart. She looked like a doll. She was perfect.  
Alice’s words echoed in Carlisle’s mind: “It’s her,” she shrieked. “It’s both of them.” She looked so happy, so excited. Carlisle envied her. She had no doubt.   
He remembered when he told her about Angie. “You were right,” he said, like someone had just died. His eyes were filled with sadness, his heart with disappointment.  
“It’s a good thing, Carlisle,” Alice told him. “I promise.”  
The days passed slowly, and he still hadn’t seen her again. Every night, when he came back home, he looked for Alice. And Alice was waiting for him.  
“She’s happy,” she told him. “She laughs a lot. And she eats a lot, too,” she chuckled. “She didn’t mention you. But I know she thinks about you. About what you told her.”  
“Did Edward tell you that?” he asked with a small sad smile.  
“Yes. But they made a deal not to listen to each other’s thoughts. So, he’s not supposed to know.”  
Carlisle tried his best to look as normal as possible, but he couldn’t fool his family. Especially not Edward, who was going through a similar path. Edward wasn’t as strong as Carlisle, though. He couldn’t help himself. Every night, he would go to Bella’s house and watch her sleep. It fascinated him. She would often say his name in her sleep. Every time she did, it would prove Alice right a little bit more.  
“She dreams about you,” Edward told his father on Sunday. “It’s like, her subconscious is trying to tell her something,” he chuckled. “I wish I knew what Bella was dreaming. It seems like she always have nightmares…”  
“I thought you weren’t supposed to read her mind,” Carlisle said.  
“I can’t help it sometimes. When I wonder what Bella might be thinking I always check Angie’s mind. They’re sisters, after all.”  
“You said they weren’t close.”  
“No,” Edward said. “Angie always kept to herself. It’s harder now. Bella suspects she knows about us. She’s giving her a hard time.”  
“She doesn’t understand why you would tell her sister, but not her,” Carlisle nodded, understanding. It pained him that Angie wasn’t close to her sister. He imagined she was never close to anyone.   
“I don’t think I can stay away much longer,” Edward confessed.  
“Alice says Bella will know soon.”  
Edward shook his head. “It’s too dangerous.”  
“We could have left,” Carlisle said. “But we chose to stay here. We were selfish. Now, we have no other choice.”  
Edward put his hand on his father’s shoulder. “Carlisle. You’re a better man than I am. You’re stronger. But you’re too hard on yourself. You deserve to be happy.”  
Carlisle smiled. “You do too,” he said. “Stay out of her mind,” he ordered in a serious tone. Edward chuckled, but nodded.  
On Monday, the school took the junior years to a greenhouse. Edward was decided to talk to Bella. But he was still unsure of what he was going to do. He knew what he wanted, but he also know what he should do.  
He listened, as Mike Newton asked Bella for prom before they got in the yellow buses. It amused him when she turned him down.  
“I’m going to Jacksonville that weekend,” she said.  
Edward wondered if it was a lie. It was frustrating not to be able to read her mind.  
He was more focused on Bella than on anything else there was to see in the greenhouse. After days of complete silence, he finally spoke to her again:  
“What’s in Jacksonville?” he asked suddenly, as she walked past him.  
Bella didn’t hide her surprise, or her annoyance.  
“How did you know about that?”  
“I…” Edward stuttered. He couldn’t come up with a lie. “You didn’t answer my question.”  
“Well, you don’t answer any of mine, so…” Bella sighed, annoyed. “I mean, you don’t even say hi to me.”  
“Hi,” he said.  
Bella rolled her eyes. “Are you gonna tell me how you stopped the van?”  
“Yeah. I had an adrenaline rush. It’s very common. You can Google it.”  
Bella scoffed. “Is that the lie you told Angie? ‘cause I’m pretty sure she’s not stupid enough to buy that.”  
“You need to be nicer to her,” Edward said.  
Bella looked up at him. ”She’s keeping things from me,” she told him.  
“Whatever she’s not telling you, maybe she shouldn’t be the one telling it to you.”  
“Yeah, that’s what she said,” Bella sighed. “She said it wasn’t her secret to tell. Which means you have a secret. And you did tell her. But you don’t want to tell me. And I don’t understand why.”  
Edward frowned. He didn’t know what to answer. Thankfully, he didn’t need to, as Jessica interrupted them.  
“Bella! Guess who just asked me to prom?”  
And with these words, Edward was gone.  
He waited for her outside, hoping he would catch her alone. He stood there, listening to the other students fooling around, playing with dirt, being stupid teenagers. They definitely lived in two different worlds.  
“Bella, look! It’s a worm,” Eric giggled as she walked past him.  
Edward went after her. Decided to do the exact opposite of what he wanted.  
“Bella we… we shouldn’t be friends,” he said.  
“You really should have figured that out a little earlier,” she told him. “I mean, why didn’t you just let the van crush me and save yourself all this regret?”  
“You think I regret saving you?”  
“I can see that you do. I just… I don’t know why.”  
“You don’t know anything,” he said.  
“Then, tell me!” she demanded. “Angie knows. I don’t understand why I’m left in the dark.”  
“Hi!” Alice interrupted them. “Are you gonna be riding with us?” she asked with a big smile, hopeful.  
“No, our bus is full,” Edward said before he got in.  
Alice pouted, disappointed, and watched as Bella walked away.  
Edward was miserable. All he wanted was to be with Bella. All the time. The smell of her blood was intoxicating. But it wasn’t just about her blood. He was fascinated by her. Everything she said, everything she did, was captivating.  
The rest of the week was difficult. He ignored her again, which wasn’t easy as they were lab partners in Biology. Edward wasn’t the only person who didn’t talk to Bella. Angie had been quiet all week as well. Which was hard. Bella could see there was something else than the Cullens’s secret on her sister’s mind, but she couldn’t ask what. She wasn’t sure she was going to have an honest answer, and she didn’t want to give her sister another opportunity to lie.  
Angie was anxious about Bella. She was relieved that her sister wasn’t asking questions anymore. But Bella was barely saying hello to her. She didn’t like it when her big sister was angry at her.  
Angie’s insomnia had bipolar tendencies. One night she would sleep lie a baby, and the night after that, she would lay awake in bed, incapable of finding sleep. It was always the same thing that kept her awake. And always the same person. And every time she slept, she dreamt. And she always dreamt about him. It was hard to ignore her feelings. But it was harder to pretend she didn’t have any.  
Even though she never talked about him, Alice often thought about her father. Angie didn’t like listening to other people’s thoughts, but every time she heard Carlisle’s name, she would keep listening. She learnt that he worried about her, but mostly, that it was getting harder with time to stay away. Angie knew exactly how he felt. She put her feelings on the count of mere curiosity. After all, she was told he was her soulmate. It was more than normal to be interested in learning more.  
Thursday morning was routine for Dr. Cullen. When he was in the hospital, he could focus on his work. The week had been extraordinarily calm. Running noses and sprained ankles were business as usual for the hospital of the small and rainy town of Forks. The small ER was never too busy, and he had just finished taking care of yet another sprained ankle when, suddenly, he smelled her. Panic immediately seized him as the delectable smell of her blood was invading the room. Why was she there? Was she hurt? How bad was it? He couldn’t think clearly, and he stood there, in the middle of the ER, looking for her, trying to figure out behind which curtain he was going to find her.  
“Dr. Cullen?” a nurse called. “Dr. Cullen?” she had to repeat several times for him to realize she needed something.  
“Yes?” He did his best to compose himself, making sure he didn’t let the nurse see through him.  
“There’s a young a girl with a possible sprained wrist,” she told him. “She hurt herself in Gym, at school. But she’s not letting anyone touch her. She’s been asking for you. She’s the sheriff’s daughter. Evangeline Swan?” It was obvious, both on her face and in her tone, that she was curious.  
Carlisle smiled, and nodded. “Yes, she’s a friend of my kids,” he told her. The nurse seemed content enough with his answer. “Thank you Joan,” he smiled again, as he took the paperwork from her.  
He didn’t wait another second, and made his way to the bed Joan had indicated. Though, he would have found her easily. He didn’t know how he managed to walk so slowly. There was a voice in his head, screaming at him to run, to hurry, as if it was a matter of life and death.  
He pulled the curtains, just to find her sitting there, on the bed. She immediately looked up at him with her beautiful big blue eyes. He could hear her heart started to beat a little faster. She was wearing jeans and a black hoodie, just like last time. Her damp hair was tangled in a beautiful mess. She was holding her right wrist carefully.  
Carlisle quickly pulled back the curtains, it was just the two of them now.  
“Are you okay?” he immediately asked. It was all that mattered. It was the only thing he could think about.  
“I’m fine,” she said in a quiet voice. “I’m sorry I asked for you. I didn’t want to…”  
“It’s okay,” he stopped her. “I’m glad you did.”  
Angie blushed and looked away. “I didn’t want to bother you,” she whispered.  
“You’re not bothering me,” he told her in a soft voice.  
He took one step, closing the distance between them. He laid the clipboard on the small metallic table next to him. He looked down at her, she was still looking away, nervously rubbing her wrist. Finally, he was seeing her again. Eight days later. She was there.  
He couldn’t help it, he gently lifted her chin with his finger. She immediately looked up, surprised by his action, and his cold skin. She trapped him effortlessly in her magnificent eyes. He wondered if she was listening to his thoughts. He wondered if she was feeling the same way he did.  
He stroke her right cheek with his thumb, before he looked down at her wrist.  
“What happened?” he asked.  
“I was playing badminton. I made a false move.”  
“Can I?” he asked, gesturing toward her wrist.  
She nodded. He took her wrist as gently as possible but she winced anyway.  
“Sorry,” he quickly apologized. She was looking down. She shook her head. “You look tired,” he said.  
“Yeah…” she whispered.  
“Are you having trouble sleeping?” he asked.  
She nodded again. It surprised him none of his children had told him. Maybe Edward was too obsessed with Bella to hear Angie was still awake in the next room. Carlisle wondered why Angie hadn’t noticed his son was visiting her sister at night. He thought maybe she was too busy thinking about something else to pay attention.  
“I’m sorry,” he said. He knew it was his fault if she wasn’t sleeping.  
“It’s not your fault,” she said. “I blame Alice,” she tried to joke.  
Carlisle chuckled. “Me too.”  
He brought her sleeve up and was relieved to see she hadn’t hurt herself again.  
“It’s definitely sprained,” he said, after a minute. “But you should be fine. It’ll be better in a few days. It’ll be alright,” he told her. “I’ll be right back.”  
He didn’t want to go, but he had to get new bandages. He took a step back, but it was only when he tried to turn around that he noticed Angie was clinging at him.  
“Sorry,” she immediately apologized as she let go of his white coat. She looked surprised, like she hadn’t noticed it either. She turned bright red and looked down, embarrassed.  
“I’ll be right back,” he repeated.  
She nodded, avoiding eye contact. When he came back, they both stayed silent as he bandaged her wrist. He was just enjoying the smell of her blood, and the sound of her heartbeat. He didn’t know when he would see her again after that, he was only enjoying her presence. Angie’s mind was busy thinking. Asking herself the same question again and again: Was Alice right?  
“Are you listening to my thoughts?” he asked suddenly in a quiet voice. He didn’t sound upset, but merely curious.  
She looked up at him, he was busy with her wrist. “No.”  
He gave her a small smile. “It seems unfair, you can know what I’m thinking, but I have no idea what you’re thinking,” he told her.  
“I have no idea what I’m thinking either,” she said in a quiet voice.  
Carlisle frowned. “About Alice’s theory?” he asked.  
Angie nodded. “You believe it’s true,” she said. She didn’t need to ask. She knew.  
“You don’t,” he said, trying to sound neutral, and failing completely.  
She shook her head. “I don’t know what I’m thinking,” she repeated.  
When he was done bandaging her wrist, he brought the sleeve back down, and at the same moment, as the thought of him leaving again crossed her mind, she immediately grabbed his coat with her left hand.  
“Is it?” she asked.  
“What?” He looked up at her and met with her eyes.  
“True. Is it?”  
Carlisle looked at her with sad eyes. “Don’t you know?” he asked.  
“Alice believes it’s true,” she said, looking away. “Edward doesn’t want it to be true, but he thinks it is anyway.”  
“You don’t want it to be true,” Carlisle said.  
The pain in his voice hurt her. He was right. She didn’t want it to be true. But that didn’t make it untrue.  
“But what I want doesn’t matter,” she said. “It won’t change the facts.”  
“What you want is the only thing that matters,” Carlisle said.  
Angie frowned. “That doesn’t seem fair.”  
“To whom? To me?” he asked. “Don’t worry about me,” he said, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. “Only you matter.”  
Angie was stunned. Shock quickly turned into anger. “Don’t say that,” she said, a little too loud, surprising both of them. She had the sudden urge to protect him, to make him feel better. Like his heart was bleeding and the only way to make it stop was to shout “You matter too”.  
“If Alice is right, then we don’t know what we really want,” she said.  
Carlisle was surprised. She understood the situation better than he had imagined.  
“You can’t have a normal life if we act upon what we know to be true,” he said.  
“I’m a telepath,” she reminded him. “What kind of normal life can I have?”  
“Any life in which I’m not involved would be better for you.”  
Angie felt like he had just stabbed her in the heart. “I don’t believe that,” she whispered. “And it’s crazy because I don’t know you, and we met a week ago. But I still don’t believe that. Alice doesn’t believe that.”  
“Alice is an optimist,” Carlisle smiled sadly.  
“And what are you?”  
Carlisle frowned. He thought for a moment. He knew exactly what he was, it was the reason why he stayed. He couldn’t deny it. He wasn’t strong enough to fight it.  
He got lost in her beautiful eyes again, he slightly smiled, and cupped her left cheek with his hand.  
“I’m yours,” he said. “Do anything you want with that.”  
Angie was dazed. She felt like her heart had just stopped. She was speechless. She had been thinking about the theory all week, she had imagined many situations, wondered how he could possibly be feeling. She imagined disappointment, anger, sadness, confusion, maybe even disgust. But not acceptance. Not this.  
She could see in his eyes he was sincere. She could hear in his mind he meant it. He had no doubt. Unlike her, he wasn’t confused. He believed it unconditionally.  
“What if you’re wrong?” she asked in a trembling voice. “What if Alice is wrong?”  
“Alice isn’t wrong,” Carlisle said. “Alice is never wrong.”  
“So, you’re just gonna believe her? No question asked?”  
Carlisle smiled. “I asked many questions,” he said. “I tried to prove Alice wrong. But I couldn’t. I know how I feel. Even if it took me a few days to accept it. Even if it’s hard to understand. Even if I shouldn’t feel it. I know how I feel when I’m with you. And I know how I feel when I’m not. It’s hard not to believe it when I’m looking at you. It seems obvious.”  
Angie was feeling dizzy. His words echoed in her head. She could feel tears in her eyes, but she didn’t know what was making her cry.  
Angie took a deep breath. “You make it sound so easy,” she breathed out.  
“You can do whatever you want,” he told her. “You can decide Alice is wrong and never see me again. The choice is yours.”  
Angie didn’t know if his words were more painful to him or to her.  
“Take your time,” he said, then he took a step back. “Your father is here.”  
Charlie interrupted everything. As soon as he arrived, Carlisle was gone. He prescribed medication for the pain, wrote a note for Angie’s teacher, and then left to take care of another patient, without even looking back at Angie. Though, if he had, she wouldn’t have noticed it, as she kept staring at the floor.  
“Three times in two weeks,” Charlie sighed, once in the car. “That’s bad luck.”  
Angie didn’t reply. She was still in shock. She was incapable of thinking clearly. Carlisle’s words were playing in her head all over again. She had no idea what to do, or what to think. It wouldn’t help her sleep better, that’s all she knew.  
The next day, Angie was barely able to keep her eyes open. The long and sleepless night had been excruciating. But also revealing. Thinking that Alice was wrong was just lying to herself. She knew she wasn’t. She had heard it in Edward’s mind, she had heard it in Carlisle’s. He was her soulmate. Now, all she had to do was decide what she wanted.  
Edward was decided to be better. Friendlier. Alice didn’t stop pestering him about his behavior at the greenhouse. He wasn’t strong enough to do the right thing. And Angie didn’t help. Her happiness went away during the weekend. She was feeling bad for not telling Bella. Bella wasn’t particularly mean to her. She just decided that, if Angie wasn’t talking, then she wouldn’t be talking either. It was nothing unusual for them, not to talk.  
This day, at lunch, he sat alone. When Bella entered the cafeteria, he raised his hand and motioned for her to join him. He was ready to be nice. Ready to be her friend.  
“Does he mean you?” Jessica asked with insulting astonishment in her voice.  
Bella ignored her, and made her way to him, surprised and curious.  
“Why don’t you sit with me today?” he asked her with a smile.  
Bella raised an eyebrow, skeptical, but sat anyway, to his relief.  
“This is different,” she said.  
“Well…” he paused. “Your sister kept insisting I talk to you. So did Alice,” he sighed. “And, I decided as long as I was going to Hell, I might do it thoroughly.”  
Bella waited for him to add something that would actually make sense, but he stayed silent. “You know I don’t have any idea what you mean.”  
“I know,” he smiled.   
Edward could hear everything Bella’s friends were saying and thinking. He wondered if she minded. “Your friends are angry with me for stealing you,” he said.  
“They’ll survive,” she told him.  
It wasn’t surprising she would rather spend time with him. It certainly made Alice’s theory a little less refutable.  
“I might not give you back, though,” he grinned.  
Bella frowned. “Why the sudden change?” she asked.  
“Many reasons,” he shrugged. “But I figured it was unfair to let you be mad at your sister. She’s done nothing wrong.”  
“Are you gonna tell me how you stopped the van?” she asked again.  
Edward pressed his lips together.  
“Or not,” she sighed. “So, are we friends now?” she asked.  
“We can try, I suppose. But I’m warning you now that I’m not a good friend for you,”  
“Your friends with Angie.”  
“Alice started it.”  
“Was it Alice who told Angie? About… whatever you’re hiding?”  
“No,” Edward said, leaning back in his seat.  
“Are you gonna tell me what you are?” she asked next.  
Edward chuckled nervously. “Do you have any theories?”  
Bella shook her head. “I’m not telling you.”  
“Why not?”  
“Too embarrassing.”  
“What if I promise I won’t laugh?”  
Bella rolled her eyes. “Can you do me a favor?”  
Edward frowned, suddenly wary. “That depends on what you want.”  
“Could you warn me beforehand the next time you decide to ignore me for my own good? Just so I’m prepared.”  
“That sounds fair,” he smiled.  
“Thanks.”  
“Can I have one answer in return?” he demanded.  
“One.”  
“Tell me one theory.”  
“Not that one,” Bella immediately retracted.  
“You didn’t qualify, you just promised one answer,” he said with a grin.  
Bella sighed.  
“I won’t laugh,” he promised.  
Bella shook her head. Edward looked down, and then glanced up at her through his long black lashes.  
“Please?” he breathed, leaning toward her.  
Bella blinked, her mind going blank. She couldn’t resist him. Not when he was trying to mesmerize her on purpose.  
“Um, well… bitten by a radioactive spider?”  
“That’s not very creative,” he scoffed.  
“I’m sorry, that’s all I’ve got.”  
“You’re not even close,” he teased.  
“Was Angie close?” she asked.  
Edward sighed.  
“I just keep asking myself what obvious clue I’m missing. If you didn’t tell her, if your sister didn’t tell her, then how does she know?”  
Edward turned around to look at the table where Angie and his sister were. He looked for a few seconds, before he turned back toward Bella.  
“I guess that’s something you’ll have to talk about with her.”  
“But she’s not telling me anything,” Bella complained.  
Edward sighed again. “I guess if I told you the truth, she would too.”  
“Then tell me,” she demanded. “Why won’t you tell me?”  
“Spider-man is… a superhero, right?” he said. “What if I’m not the hero? What if I’m the bad guy?”  
“Oh,” Bella said, her eyes lit with realization. “I see.”  
“Do you?” he asked, suddenly worried he had said too much.  
“You’re dangerous,” Bella guessed. “But not bad. I don’t believe that you’re bad.”  
“You don’t know anything.”  
“Yeah, you keep saying that,” Bella sighed. She paused for a minute before she sighed again. “Why don’t we just… hang out?” she asked.  
Edward chuckled.  
“Everybody’s going to the beach. Come. Have fun,” she said.  
Edward considered it for a minute. “Which beach?”  
“La Push.”  
Oh oh.  
“I don’t know,” he said, awkwardly. He was a terrible liar. How did he keep his secret for so long?  
“Is there something wrong with that beach?” she asked.  
“It’s just a little crowded,” he lied.  
Bella shrugged. “We’re going to be late,” she said.  
“I’m not going to class today,” he said.  
“Why not?”  
“It’s healthy to ditch class now and then,” he grinned.  
“Well, I’m going,” she said.  
“I’ll see you later, then.”  
Bella shrugged again, before she rushed out of the cafeteria.


	8. Soulmates

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, hello, bonjour :)  
> This is really long so I hope I didn't make too many mistakes ^^'  
> I hope you'll like it!  
> Enjoy :D

Angie was lying in her bed, too preoccupied to sleep. Carlisle’s words had been playing in repeat in her head since she got in her father’s car. Every time she closed her eyes, she would see him. She couldn’t forget his sad smile. It broke her heart a little bit more every time.  
She knew how he felt. He thought she was his soulmate or whatever the “vampire version” of it was. Angie had been lying to herself all week. Alice wasn’t wrong, and she knew it. She felt it.  
It was an impossible and complicated truth; they were made for each other.  
Angie was sixteen. She had never been in love with anyone, not even had a single crush. She thought she didn’t know what she was feeling. That they put ideas in her head. She was in denial. She was overwhelmed with confusion and incomprehension. She had billions of questions to ask, and only one person could answer them.  
Maybe it wouldn’t have been so hard if she didn’t know how he was truly feeling. Or maybe it would have been worse. She heard it, in his mind, she felt it. He was in pain, and he was scared. He was afraid she would choose to ignore it, to forget about it, to never see him again.  
Her own feelings seemed so insignificant as she thought about his. It didn’t matter how she felt, or if she was in pain. He was, and that was unbearable. Suddenly, she understood. “Only you matter.” He felt the exact same way about her. They couldn’t help it. He was the most important person in her life, and she was his.  
How crazy that was. They barely knew each other. It had been eight days. And they talked for maybe an hour. Was it destiny? Was it the universe? Was it magic? All these questions Angie wanted to ask but she was certain even Carlisle didn’t know the answers.  
When morning came, and it was time to get up, and get ready for school, Angie was certain of two things; Alice’s theory wasn’t just a theory, and being away from Carlisle Cullen hurt more than a thousand voices in her head.  
At breakfast, she sat under the worried eyes of her sister, in front of an untouched bowl of cereals. During classes, she didn’t listen to a word her teachers said, and she was lucky enough for them not to notice she wasn’t paying attention. At lunch, she sat across from Alice and Jasper, wondering if they felt the same way about each other than she felt about Carlisle.  
“Are you okay?” Alice asked, worry obvious on her face.  
Angie looked down at her lap and nodded. She hadn’t touched the food on her plate. She had been starving all week, always needing more food than her single plate could give her. Alice had been more than happy to share what she wouldn’t eat anyway.  
“Are you not hungry today?” Alice asked.  
Angie shook her head to answer.  
“What’s wrong?”  
“Where’s Edward?” Angie changed the subject.  
Alice sighed. “He’s with Bella,” she answered.  
Angie looked up quickly and then followed Alice’s gaze. Bella was sitting at a table, alone with Edward.  
“Is he going to tell her?” she asked.  
“I don’t think so,” Alice said. “Not here anyway. But it’s a good start.”  
“Hopefully, he’ll tell her soon...” Angie whispered.  
She had been so focused on Carlisle that she had forgotten about her sister, and her own secret. Bella will probably be mad at her for not telling her. Even if she understood why she kept the Cullens’s secret, she had been hiding her own for eight years, and Angie was afraid Bella would never forgive her.  
After class, Angie walked absent-mindedly toward the red truck, ignoring the cold rain that was falling on the parking lot. Bella wasn’t there, she was going to have to wait.  
Angie quickly got soaked by the rain but it didn’t bother her. Maybe it would have if only she had noticed it. Her gaze was lost in space, and her mind was still busy with the same person. The words were echoing in her head, getting louder with time.  
I know how I feel when I’m with you. And I know how I feel when I’m not.  
It seems obvious.  
Yes, it did. She, too, knew how she felt when she wasn’t with him. It was horrible – this need of being with him – it was painful. But among all these unwelcomed feelings was the need to understand. Why him? Why her? Was she really the one? Was she nearly good enough for him?  
“Angie.”  
She jumped, startled by Edward’s voice. He was standing just in front of her, he had a sorry look on his face.  
“Bella isn’t here,” he said. “I brought her back home, she fainted in Biology.”  
“Oh,” she frowned.  
“She’s fine. They were blood testing and she became sick.” Angie nodded. She knew her sister couldn’t stand the smell of blood.  
“Alice will drive you back home,” he said.  
Angie looked down at her sprained wrist and sighed. “Thank you,” she whispered.  
“You know,” he started, “he’s asking himself the exact same questions,” he said.  
Angie frowned, confused for a moment. “What?” she breathed out, once she understood what he meant. How could he not be good enough for her?  
“You should talk to him,” Edward said.  
Alice suddenly appeared next to her brother and took the truck’s keys from him.  
“Hey, you ready?” she asked in an unusual and obvious fake happy tone.  
Angie kept staring at Edward, her eyes filled with incomprehension.  
“Have you talked to Bella?” she asked.  
Edward looked down and sighed. “We talked. But, I couldn’t tell her.”  
“Don’t worry,” Alice said. “She’ll know. Come on,” she told Angie. “You’re gonna get sick, look at you.”  
Angie stared at Edward for a few seconds, wondering if what he was saying was true. The vampire nodded before he walked away. Angie watched him leave, dumbfounded. She shivered, her body reminding her of her current state. She was wet and cold. She quickly got in the truck where Alice was waiting for her.  
“Are you okay?” the vampire asked.  
Angie nodded but didn’t say a word. Neither of them said anything as Alice drove to Charlie’s house. Angie was lost in her thoughts again, like she had been for the last 24 hours. Edward’s words were echoing inside her head, but his voice quickly turned into her own.  
When Alice stopped the truck in the driveway, it was still raining. The heavy rain made it impossible to see the house. At first, Alice thought it was the reason why Angie wasn’t moving. But when she turned toward her friend, she noticed she probably wasn’t even aware they had stopped.  
“We’re there,” Alice said in a soft voice, not wanting to startle her.  
“I want to see him,” was Angie’s answer. She hadn’t moved. She was still staring into nothingness.  
Alice thought she misheard for a second. “Carlisle?”  
“Yes,” Angie said, looking up at her friend. “I need to see him.” Suddenly, there was nothing that mattered more. She had to see him, to talk to him, to stop the pain.  
“Really?” Alice asked with a smile. Angie nodded. “Okay!” she said, a little too excited. “How do you wanna do it? Do you want him to come here? Oh! You could come to our house, you could spend the night there, and spend some time with him. We don’t have any bed but I suppose a couch could do it, and we could order pizza, and…”  
“Alice,” Angie stopped her. She looked panicked.  
“Sorry. I got excited for a minute,” the vampire chuckled.  
“I just want to see him,” Angie said.  
Alice nodded. “We could wait for your dad to come home, and ask him if he minds you coming over to my place. You’ll get the time to take a shower and change.”  
Angie took a deep breath. “Okay,” she nodded.  
Angie enjoyed the long and hot shower. Warm water mixed with apprehension made her forget she was exhausted. She was anxious. She was about to spend the night in a house full of vampires. A house that belonged to her soulmate.  
She was eager to see Carlisle again, but also very nervous. She imagined she was nothing like he had imagined her other half to be, and that he must be very disappointed. Edward couldn’t be right. Why would Carlisle Cullen think for even one second he wasn’t good enough for her? He was a doctor and a vampire, and she was just a small insignificant human.  
Angie took the first backpack she could find and stuffed in a few things she was going to have to need to spend the night out. When she walked down the stairs, her father was home. She could hear laughs coming from the kitchen. When Angie joined them, she saw a suspicious and irritated Bella staring at a relaxed and laughing Charlie.  
“Ah, Angie,” said Charlie. “Alice just told me you were going to spend the night with her. I’m glad you made a friend.”  
Angie shyly smiled. She could hear how proud he was of her. She remembered his speech from the week before about the Cullens. He was happy Angie had made friends with them.  
“Are you ready to leave?” Alice asked. “Edward’s outside.”  
Angie nodded.  
“Well, have fun, honey,” Charlie said.  
“Thanks, dad,” Angie whispered. She hugged him quickly before she followed Alice out of the house. She glanced at Bella for a second. Her sister looked confused and irritated. She looked away quickly, feeling bad for keeping all this a secret.  
The rain was still heavy, and they had to rush inside the Volvo. Angie got in the back seats and gave a small smile to Edward as she closed the door.  
“Don’t worry, she’ll understand,” Alice said.  
“I don’t know… She’ll be mad I didn’t tell her.”  
“She’ll understand,” Alice repeated. “It’s not your place to tell her.”  
“What about my secret?”  
Alice gave her a small smile. “She’ll understand why you didn’t tell her.”  
“I’m not so sure.”  
“Don’t worry about it,” Alice said. “You’re sisters. She’ll get over it.”  
“We were never really close.”  
“Trust me. This is going to make you closer,” Alice chuckled. Angie hoped Alice was right. But after all, Alice was always right.  
Angie nervously played with the bandages on her wrist, thinking about all the questions she had. Only Alice could answer a few of them, but she didn’t want to be rude, and hesitated. But if she was going to spend the evening with Carlisle, she had to know a few things.  
“Alice,” Edward said. “Angie has a few questions for you.”  
Angie rolled her eyes, annoyed. Alice turned her head, curious.  
“We had a deal,” Angie complained.  
“Sorry,” Edward chuckled.  
“What’s up?” Alice smiled.  
Angie sighed and looked down. “How did you know… you know, that Jasper was the one?” she asked.  
Alice smiled. “I knew before I even met him.”  
“Right,” Angie remembered. “You saw him in a vision.”  
“When I first saw him, in my vision, I knew I had to find him. I knew I belonged to him, just like he belonged to me.”  
“But how? How did you know?”  
“I could feel it,” she said. “When I pictured my future, we were together.”  
“No question asked?”  
“Ask yourself this; how do you feel when you imagine your future, but Carlisle isn’t a part of it?”  
Angie thought for a moment. She imagined living in Forks, in the same town as him, so close to him, being friends with his “children”, but she never saw him. She imagined graduating high school and leaving Forks for college, alone. She imagined never seeing him ever again.  
“It hurts,” she said in a trembling voice.  
“There you have it.”  
“But it doesn’t make sense! I don’t know him, I can’t feel that strong for someone I don’t know.”  
Alice chuckled. “We’re vampires, Angie. How does that make sense? We don’t know how the world works. Is it magic that made us vampires? Is it science? Does destiny exist? Are we free to make out own choices or is the universe making them for us? The point is, we don’t know. Maybe my theory is what other people call “love at first sight”. Maybe it’s something else,” she shrugged. “These are answers we don’t have, but it’s okay because they don’t really matter.”  
“Don’t they?” Angie asked.  
“What matters is how we feel, not why we feel.”  
Angie sighed. “I think we make our own choices,” she said. “Most of the time.”  
“It wasn’t your choice to be a vampire’s other half. But it’s your choice to be with him or not.”  
“So… it’s just a coincidence?” Angie asked. “Is my blood different to him because we’re meant to be or are we meant to be because of my blood?”  
“Well, as you know, it’s just a theory, but, I believe your blood is different because you’re meant to be.”  
“So, it’s destiny?”  
“I don’t know if destiny exists.”  
“What does he think?”  
“I can’t answer that. You should ask him.”  
“What do you think, Edward?” Angie asked.  
“I…” he sighed. “I don’t know why I’m attracted to Bella the way Carlisle’s attracted to you. But I know that now that I met Bella, I can’t live without her. Just like I can’t imagine leaving my family. Maybe it’s destiny… Maybe it’s something else. But it doesn’t really matter. Knowing why won’t change anything.”  
Angie sighed. They weren’t telling her anything she didn’t already know.  
Edward drove fast. Insanely, dangerously fast. Angie would have been worried if only she didn’t know that he was in total control. He would never put her in danger. He couldn’t do that to Carlisle. He couldn’t do that to Bella.  
It took them twenty minutes to drive from Charlie’s house to theirs. She guessed it would have taken her about twenty more minutes with the old truck and a normal speed. The rain had stopped. It allowed Angie to admire the beautiful house from outside. It was a big luxury and modern house, with big windows everywhere. It fitted perfectly in the middle of the forest.  
“Do you like it?” Alice asked with hopeful eyes, as if it mattered.  
“It’s beautiful,” Angie breathed out.  
“Wait until you see what’s inside,” she joked.  
Angie was about to follow them, but stopped. Fear seized her suddenly. What if he didn’t want to see her? What if the others didn’t want her there?  
“Carlisle isn’t home yet,” Edward said. “He’ll be here soon.”  
“Oh,” Angie said, disappointment obvious on her face.  
“And don’t worry about Rosalie. She won’t bite.”  
Angie tried not to laugh. “Haha,” she said, and rolled her eyes.  
“Come on,” Alice said as she took Angie’s hand and dragged her inside. “Esme can’t wait to meet you.”  
“What?”  
Edward chuckled when Angie gave him a panic look. She was a shy girl, not used to being around people. She never had any friends, and never met any of their parents or other relatives. This was all new to her, and it was more terrifying than the idea of being inside a house full of vampires.  
The hall was a big white room. It was very bright, very open, and very large. The back, south-facing wall was made of glass. The first thing Angie saw was the wooden staircase on the west-side of the room that matched with the rest of the house. The room was filled with modern art, paintings and sculptures… Even the little furniture there looked like a work of art.  
“Wow,” Angie breathed out.  
“Carlisle had it built for us,” Edward told her.  
“Well, he has good tastes,” Angie said in a murmur.  
“It’s the only place where we don’t have to hide,” he said.  
“What time is it?” Alice asked.  
“Um, five,” Angie said, pointing at the huge clock on the wall.  
“Carlisle should be here in an hour,” she said. “Are you hungry?”  
“It’s too early to eat, Alice,” Edward reminded her sister.  
“I know that. But she hasn’t eaten at lunch. You must be starving,” she told Angie.  
“I’m okay,” Angie lied. She didn’t want to be a bother.  
“Well, tell us when you’re hungry, we’ll order a pizza, okay?” Alice said. “You like pizza, right?”  
“I do,” Angie chuckled.  
“Come on,” Edward interrupted them.  
He took Angie’s jacket and laid it on the bench next to the front door before he led her upstairs. Alice was right, it was even more beautiful inside. Everything looked really expensive and Angie felt out of place. When they stepped in the living room, Angie didn’t have the time to admire the huge white room, or the white couches, or the other pieces of arts that were there, as Rosalie, Emmett, Jasper and another woman, Angie guessed to be Esme, were waiting for them.  
“Angie this is Esme,” Edward confirmed her thoughts.  
“Hi,” the small, beautiful, red-haired woman smiled. “It’s so nice to meet you Angie. I’m glad you’re here.”  
“Nice to meet you too,” Angie shyly smiled back.  
“And you already know Rosalie and Emmett.”  
“What’s up?” Emmett gave her a big welcoming smile. Angie wasn’t surprised he was being nice, she knew he didn’t really have a problem with her. Unlike Rosalie.  
“Hey,” the blonde said dryly.  
“H-hi,” Angie stuttered.  
“Happy to see you again, Angie,” was all Jasper could say.  
“So, you really can read minds like Edward?” Emmett asked, amused.  
“Emmett!” Esme reprimanded him.  
“Yeah, I can,” Angie replied.  
“Cool. What am I thinking right now?” he asked.  
His siblings rolled their eyes. Angie guessed Emmett was just being himself, which reassured her, it meant he really didn’t have a problem with her.  
“Bears,” Angie said.  
Emmett laugh. “Cool, another telepath,” he said. “But, try and stay out of my head, okay?”  
Angie nodded. “That won’t be a problem,” she told him.  
“I like her. She respects my privacy,” he said. It was clearly aimed at Edward who rolled his eyes again.  
Angie blushed, slightly embarrassed.  
“What about your human?” Rosalie asked Edward, disapproval clear in her voice.  
“Bella doesn’t know.”  
“Yet,” Alice finished.  
“Okay,” Esme interrupted them. She took Angie’s arm and dragged her out of the living room. Angie gave a puzzled look to Alice who just smiled and waved at her. “Are you hungry?” Esme asked. “We don’t have any food here, but we could order something.”  
“That’s very nice,” Angie shyly said in a whisper. “But you don’t need to…”  
“We never had any visitors, let me be a good host,” Esme smiled. “If I had known you were coming I would have bought food but…”  
“I know, I’m sorry, this is really rude of me to…”  
“No, no,” Esme stopped her. “I’m glad that you’re here. I completely understand,” she smiled. “I looked it up on the internet and we can order a pizza now, it will be here in 20 minutes.”  
Angie wondered, amused, if they thought pizza was the only thing humans ate. Of course, she knew it was just the only kind of food that could be delivered in Forks. Angie was starving, and it was only a matter of time until her stomach would loudly and embarrassingly betray her.  
She nodded. “Thank you,” she shyly smiled.  
“I will get the phone,” she said, a little too excited.  
Esme had led her to the kitchen where a laptop was open on the black wooden countertop. The kitchen was amazing. It was big and modern like the rest of the house. Very well equipped even though they had never used it.  
“Did you choose?” Esme asked when she came back in the kitchen with a phone in her hand. The laptop showed the different kind of pizzas she could order.  
“Um, the one with lots of cheese,” she said.  
Alice and Edward joined her while Esme made the call. Angie felt bad for bothering her, she could have called herself.  
“It makes her happy,” Alice explained. “Now that you’re here, she knows Carlisle will be a happier man.”  
“She can’t know that,” Angie frowned.  
Alice chuckled as she sat on the countertop on Angie’s left. “She knows. We all know. That’s what happens when you have a mate, you’re happy.”  
“A mate?” Angie repeated.  
“Yeah,” she nodded. “What’s wrong,” she asked when she saw the weird look on Angie’s face.  
“Is “mate” the vampire version of soulmate?” she asked.  
“Yeah,” Alice shrugged.  
“Why not just say soulmate?” she asked.  
“Well,” Alice mused. “I guess there’s a small difference.”  
“Why would it be different?”  
“I think that’s something you should talk about with Carlisle,” Edward said with a sad tone. He was leaning on the countertop on her right.  
Angie frowned again, wondering why it was such a big deal.  
“Your house is amazing,” she changed the subject.  
“Yeah. Too bad we don’t get to use the kitchen, it’s a great kitchen,” Alice said.  
Angie raised an eyebrow. She had never noticed how weird Alice was sometimes.  
“Bella could do wonders in this kitchen,” Angie chuckled.  
“She likes to cook?” Edward asked.  
“I don’t know if she likes it. But she does it very well.”  
“Do you cook?” Alice asked.  
“Not really.”  
“Why not?” she asked.  
Angie shrugged. “My mom can’t cook. So, Bella stepped up. Again.”  
“Bella’s very responsible for her age,” Edward said.  
“Yeah, someone’s got to be,” Angie nodded. “My mom’s great, but… she’s a little too eccentric sometimes.”  
“You miss her,” Alice said, it wasn’t a question, she could hear it in her voice.  
“Yeah…”  
“You’re going to Jacksonville with Bella, right?” Edward asked. “You’ll see her then.”  
Angie nodded. “Yeah,” she sighed. She hadn’t thought about it. Leaving Forks. Leaving him. Even for just a couple of days. “How do you know about Jacksonville?” Angie frowned.  
“Bella told Mike when she turned him down.” From the look she was giving him, Edward realized she had no idea what he was talking about. “He asked her out, for prom,” he said. “Monday morning.”  
“Oh.”  
“You didn’t know?” Edward asked, surprised.  
“Bella didn’t tell me,” Angie said.  
Edward felt stupid, and bad; it was his fault if Bella wasn’t talking to her sister.  
“Don’t worry about it,” Angie sighed.  
“I thought you weren’t supposed to listen to my thoughts,” Edward said.  
“Well, it didn’t stop you from listening to mine.”  
“Okay,” Edward chuckled. “Let’s make a deal, again.”  
“Fine,” Angie said. “But stick to it this time!”  
“I will. Carlisle doesn’t want me in your head, anyway. I don’t want to make him angry,” he chuckled.  
Angie frowned. “You told him about our deal?”  
“He asked about you,” Edward nodded. “He was worried.”  
“About what?”  
“Nothing in particular. He was just missing you.”  
“I hope it’s not too weird,” Alice tried to joke.  
Angie shrugged. “No. I wanted to ask you about him too. I just didn’t dare do it.”  
“Well, you should have,” Alice smiled.  
Edward suddenly straightened up as Alice got back on her feet. Angie frowned, wondering what had gotten into them.  
“Who ordered pizza?”  
Angie quickly turned around to see Carlisle standing in the doorway with a pizza box in his hands. He looked up to meet her eyes. Surprise clear on his face.  
“We’ll go now,” Edward said and followed Alice out of the kitchen.  
Carlisle and Angie wordlessly stared at each other for half a minute. They both felt better now. Just seeing each other filled a void in their heart that had been hurting them for as long as they had been apart.  
“Hey,” Carlisle was the first to talk.  
“H-hi,” she stuttered. She quickly looked down. “I ordered the pizza.”  
“I guessed,” he chuckled. He took a few steps, rapidly closing the distance between them, and placed the pizza on the countertop.  
“I’m sorry to have come here uninvited, I just…”  
“It’s okay,” he stopped her. “It’s a nice surprise,” he said, happiness obvious in his tone. “What are you doing here?”  
Angie blushed and kept her eyes on the ground. “I just wanted to see you,” she mumbled.  
Carlisle smiled. Like he had the day before, he took her chin between his thumb and fingers and gently made her look up. He was so happy to see her. He wasn’t expecting her at all. All day long, he feared he had scared her for good the day before. She met with his dark eyes, it was impossible not to notice how relieved he was.  
“I thought I wouldn’t see you again for a while. I was afraid what I said yesterday was too much.”  
Angie shook her head. “I understand why you said what you said,” she told him. She paused and looked away again. “I feel it too… Even if it took me a week to accept it. I’m sorry.”  
“Don’t be sorry,” he said, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. “This is a lot to take in. You need time.”  
Angie looked up, wondering what he was really thinking. He was happy to see her, but he was also scared to lose her, and, of course, there was still this delicious smell of candy that was burning his throat.  
“You look tired,” Carlisle sighed, passing his thumb under her eyes.  
“I’m fine,” she said, taking his large cold hand in her small ones.  
“You should eat before it gets cold,” he said, quickly removing his hand from hers.  
Angie shyly smiled and nodded. She opened the huge box and the fabulous smell of melted cheese made her realize she was starving. But the pizza didn’t smell nearly as good to Angie as Angie smelled to Carlisle. And that’s a thought that made her shiver.  
“I’ll never eat all that,” she said.  
“Don’t worry about it,” he smiled. “It’s a little early to be eating,” he noted after she took her first bite.  
“I haven’t eaten anything today,” she admitted.  
Carlisle frowned. “Why not?”  
“I wasn’t hungry at the time,” she shrugged.  
She looked up at him when he didn’t answer. He looked worried.  
“It’s not your fault,” she quickly said.  
Carlisle smiled and chuckled. “Now, you’re reading my mind.”  
“I wasn’t,” she shook her head, looking back down.  
Carlisle sadly smiled again, and nodded. “I wish you wouldn’t. I wouldn’t want to scare you.”  
“I can go if my blood’s making you uncomfortable,” she quickly told him, even though she was hoping he didn’t want her to leave.  
“No,” he immediately said. “Don’t go. I’ll be fine. You’re not making me uncomfortable. Not at all.”  
Angie nodded, relieved. “Does it hurt?”  
“What?” he asked, confused for a second. “Oh. No, it doesn’t,” he lied.  
“You know. You can’t lie to me.”  
“I could if you didn’t read my mind,” he said with a sad smile.  
“I heard it the first time,” she said. “I know it burns. I was just wondering… if it hurts the same now…”  
Carlisle sighed. “Don’t worry about it.”  
“I think I can’t help it,” she said.  
“I know.” Carlisle had spent the entire week worrying. He couldn’t help it either.  
He watched her eat in silence. It should have been weird, but Angie had spent the entire week eating lunch while her friends were watching her, and she was getting used to it.  
“What made you come here?” he asked.  
Angie glanced at him for a second. “I… have questions,” she said.  
“Of course.”  
Carlisle was leaning on his left elbow resting on the countertop, turned toward Angie whose hair was hiding her face. He couldn’t help it, he moved her hair away from her face, and she glanced at him, surprised by his action. He could never get enough of her beautiful blue eyes. He smiled.  
“What did you want to ask?”  
Angie quickly looked away, and stayed silent.  
“You know, I can’t read minds,” he joked.  
Angie closed the pizza box and turned toward him. “I just… it’s kind of rude…”  
“Ah,” he said with a smile, knowing exactly what she meant. “I think it’s completely natural to want to know that.”  
“I haven’t asked anyone,” she said. “I don’t even know about Alice.”  
“You can ask, she’ll tell you.”  
“I don’t want to be rude.”  
“You’re assuming we’re old, that’s why,” he chuckled.  
Angie shrugged. “I’m assuming you’re “years and years of practice” old.”  
“Mmh,” Carlisle nodded. “I was born in 1640, in London,” he said. He watched carefully for any reaction. But she simply looked surprised. Just very surprised.  
“Wow,” she breathed out. She was expecting him to be old, she imagined he could have been much older. “So, you’re like… three hundred and seventy something years old.”  
“That’s right,” he nodded, anxious about what she was really thinking.  
Angie didn’t know what she was supposed to think. She was fascinated and curious. Tones of new questions crossed her mind. One made her inadvertently chuckle.  
“What?” he asked.  
“What happened to your accent?”  
Carlisle laughed. “I’ve been in America for a while.”  
“How long have you been here?”  
“About a century.”  
“Did you stay in England before that?”  
He nodded. “A little. Then, I moved to France and after that I stayed in Italy for two centuries.”  
“What did you do in Italy?”  
“I stayed with other vampires,” he said, he was awfully vague.  
Angie nodded. “Mmh.”  
“What?”  
“Were they the ones who… are they the reason why you don’t… drink human blood?”  
“No,” he said. “They didn’t share my philosophy,” he said, obviously disappointed.  
“Why? Why don’t you drink human blood?”  
Carlisle looked away and sighed. “I don’t want to be that kind of person,” he said.  
Angie hesitated before she asked her next question. “Have you ever…”  
“No,” he shook his head.  
“That’s impressive,” Angie said. “I know how hard it is. Jasper’s always in pain…”  
“Jasper’s our newest vegetarian. He’s still new to this.”  
“Vegetarian?” Angie repeated.  
Carlisle chuckled. “That’s what we call ourselves.”  
“It makes sense,” Angie frowned. “I think…”  
Carlisle chuckled. “It’s kind of a private joke.”  
Angie shyly smiled, looking away. She hesitated about asking her next question, she guessed it was a subject he would rather avoid.  
“What is it?” he asked.  
“Nothing,” she shook her head.  
Carlisle took a step back and moved to stand in front of her, trapping her between his body and the countertop. He was so close, his mere presence made her feel dizzy. He was still smelling like old books, it was an unthreatening smell that made her comfortable. She could get used to it pretty quickly. She blushed at that thought, and looked away. Carlisle slightly smiled, as he slid his finger along her cheek to her chin, and gently made her look up. He couldn’t get enough of her blue eyes. There was something pure in them, perfect innocence.  
“Have they showed you around the house?” he asked.  
Angie shook her head. “I’ve been in the living room.”  
“Come on.”  
He led her into a long hall paneled with a honey-colored wood. “Rosalie and Emmett’s room, Alice’s room,” he said, gesturing as they walked past the doors. “My office,” he said, but Angie wasn’t paying attention anymore.  
She was staring at the large wooden cross hanging on the wall at the end of the hall. It seemed very old, and Angie didn’t understand what it was doing there, it seemed out of place, even more out of place than her.  
“Do you believe in God?” he asked.  
“No,” she quickly answered.  
“Why not?” he asked, as he stepped into his office.  
Angie didn’t reply right away. She followed him inside the dark room. There were no windows, it was very different from the rest of the house. There were huge shelves filled with old books. The room smelled exactly like him. There was an old dark wooden desk in the middle of the room.  
Carlisle took her hand, and they sat in the black couch behind the desk. Angie kept looking around, amazed by all the books and the dark paintings surrounding her.  
“A few years ago,” she started. “At school, we studied the witches of Salem,” she said. “Because people believed in God then, they burnt girls like me,” she explained. “If God did exist, he wouldn’t have let that happen.”  
Her words hit Carlisle right in the heart. It seemed like they were directed right at him. Guilt submerged him suddenly, as his past came back to him. His father was exactly the kind of man she was referring to. He was exactly that kind of man.  
“I believe in God,” he said. Something in his tone told Angie something was wrong. “My father was a pastor. He led hunts for… werewolves, vampires… witches.” He sounded and looked ashamed of himself. Angie felt bad for him, she shouldn’t have said anything. “I led hunts too.”  
“It was another time,” Angie said in a soothing voice. She could hear the guilt in his voice, and it hurt to see him in pain.  
“I was hunting vampires when I died,” he said. Angie quickly looked up at him, he was still looking away.  
“What happened?”  
“I was 23. At the time, monsters weren’t just legends. I was a disappointment to my father, I didn’t accuse innocent people, I was more meticulous. I discovered a coven of vampires hiding in the sewers of the city. I wasn’t alone, people gathered their pitchforks and torches,” he scoffed. “The vampires killed two men after one of them bit me.”  
“What happened then?” Angie asked in a whisper, incapable of talking louder.  
“I knew what my father would do. I hid. The transformation lasted 3 days. It was excruciatingly painful,” he said, something in his eyes told Angie he remembered it like it had happened the day before. “I knew what I had become. I tried to destroy myself.” Angie gasped. Her reaction made Carlisle looked up. “Are you okay?”  
“I don’t like that part of the story,” she mumbled.  
Carlisle sadly smiled. He moved closer to her and leaned forward to kiss her forehead. Angie closed her eyes, enjoying the unfamiliar gesture of affection. She grabbed his shirt and looked up when he moved away.  
“I won’t give too much details then. I was so… repelled by myself that I had the strength to try to kill myself with starvation.”  
“Too much details,” Angie shivered.  
“Sorry,” he said, stroking her hair. “Eventually, I was very weak and I realized it was just a matter of time before I ended up hurting someone. So, one night, as a herd of deer passed nearby where I was hiding, the hunger was just too strong and I attacked without a thought. That’s when I realized I could live a decent life. I started to study. Then I moved to France, continued on through Europe, to the universities there. And, I became a doctor. Helping people made my life bearable.”  
“That’s why blood doesn’t… bother you like it does the others?”  
Carlisle shook his head. “It took me two centuries to adjust,” he said. “I barely notice the smell anymore, I thought I was immune to the scent of blood by now. And then, I met you.”  
Angie looked away. “I’m sorry, I know it hurts.”  
“Don’t be sorry,” he said. “You make my life worth living.”  
Angie looked up at him, astounded. His life story had been painful to hear. But this was unconceivable.  
“Of course, your life is worth living,” she breathed out. “You’re a great man.”  
“I’m a monster,” he shook his head and looked away.  
“That’s not true,” she said.  
“I’m a vampire.”  
“So?”  
Angie was trying to find his gaze but he was looking away. She placed her hand on his right cheek and made him look at her. She could see all the pain in his dark eyes, centuries of shame and disgust.  
“I don’t believe it makes you evil,” she said. “I believe it makes you an even better man.”  
Carlisle saw she meant it, she wasn’t scared of him, or ashamed, or disgusted. What she saw in him, he had never dared see in himself. She was proud. Proud of him for what he did, and for what he never did.  
“You should be proud of yourself,” she said. “You should be so proud of what you accomplished. You’re not a monster, don’t ever say that again. Don’t even think about it,” she demanded.  
Carlisle couldn’t help but laugh. It had never, in his second life, occurred to him he was a good man, not even a “man”. And now, a human teenager was ordering him to forget everything he believed. She was so full of hope. Pure and innocent. And he hoped with his entire being that he wasn’t going to ruin that.  
“Am I making you laugh?”  
He shook his head. “You’re so bossy,” he joked.  
“I’m serious.”  
“I know,” he smiled.  
“You’re not a monster,” she said. “You need to believe that.”   
Carlisle sighed. He had been raised to believe vampires were evil. Even if he wasn’t the typical vampire, he was still dangerous, and damned to Hell.  
“Carlisle.”   
For the first, she said his name. It surprised him, he felt so good to hear it from her lips, even though she had a very serious tone. Now it was clear to Angie why they didn’t say soulmate, but just mate. They didn’t think they had a soul.  
“If you’re damned to Hell,” she said. “Then I am too.”  
“Why?” he asked, confused.  
“I can read minds. That makes me something else than human. By your definition, I’m damned too.”  
“You’re not…” he started to say, and then he understood what she meant.  
“What we are doesn’t define who we are,” she said. “And even though I don’t believe in Hell, I believe you’re not going there. There’s a special place for you in Heaven. There must be. For all of you. I’m sure of it.”  
For the first time in over three centuries, Carlisle started to believe it was a possibility. That he was indeed worthy of living, of calling himself a man. How could he not believe that when he was looking into her bright blue eyes, full of hope? He saw something else in them, something more than kindness and innocence. He saw a glimpse of redemption.  
“I don’t deserve you,” he said.  
“You deserve better,” she shook her head.  
Carlisle smiled as he leaned forward to kiss her forehead again. “Have you thought about what I said yesterday?”  
“That’s all I’ve been doing,” she said. “But which part are you talking about exactly?”  
“I’m yours,” he reminded her. These words had the power to heal all her pain. “Have you decided what you were going to do with that?”  
She looked away, moved her legs so that she was sitting next to him and her feet were on the other side of his thighs. She rested her right shoulder on the back of the couch, looked down at her hands, and nodded.  
“Yesterday you said only I mattered,” she whispered. “Now I understand why you said that. Even though it’s only been a week since we met, I know I can’t live without you. Just thinking about it hurts so much,” she said with a trembling voice. “I don’t know what I want to do, but I know I want to do it with you.”  
Carlisle smiled, but she couldn’t see it. She felt him lean forward, and he put his lips on her forehead again. “You don’t know how happy that makes me,” he whispered.  
He moved away, but she stayed close to him. She rested her head on his chest, and closed her eyes, exhausted. He was stroking her hair, and the movement of his chest soothed her. She quickly fell asleep. Finally.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for your kind words! It's very encouraging!


	9. The Night Between

It was an inexplicable and incredible sensation that Carlisle and Angie were feeling. It seemed absurd that two people who didn’t know each other would be incapable of being apart for more than one day. It had been 11 days since they met. And they hadn’t been in each other’s presence for more than 2 hours. What they were feeling was definitely not love. It was a feeling of belonging. They belonged with each other. They belonged to each other. But love was inevitable. Wasn’t it?  
It was dark, as always, in Carlisle’s office. When Angie fell asleep he felt guilty for not having any bed for her to sleep in. It was just another reminder of their difference, she was human, he wasn’t. He laid her on the black couch, it wasn’t long but she was so tiny she could lay there, and there would still be space for him to sit down on it. She curled up on her side in her sleep, like she always did.  
It had been a long time since Carlisle had to fight the craving for human blood. He remembered his first days as a vampire. His first years. He remembered how painful it was to fight the hunger. It burned in his throat and every breath he took made it worse. But he adjusted. It took him centuries to be able to resist blood. He was almost immune to it. Not totally immune, because he was a vampire, and the hunger will always be a part of him, but he managed.  
Angie was different. He had never met someone whose blood smelled so painfully delicious. It felt worse than when he tried to starve himself to death. It burned worse. But he knew he would never try to satiate his thirst. Because it wasn’t the kind of person he was, because he wasn’t capable of hurting her in any way. The mere idea made him want to kill himself again. It disgusted him. Physically, it hurt, but mentally, there was no dilemma, he didn’t have a choice to make. He wasn’t going to hurt her. He was going to adjust, again.  
He couldn’t move. He was sitting there, on the couch, Angie sleeping right next to him, her feet on his thighs. He could only hear the sound of her heartbeat and her steady breathing. It was like time had stopped. For hours, he sat there, stroking her hair.  
Until Edward appeared in the doorway. He had just returned from Angie’s house. From Bella’s bedroom. Going there at night was a temptation Carlisle had painfully managed to resist. Angie was never sleeping, anyway. Carlisle sighed, and got up. He gave one last look to Angie, before he reluctantly followed Edward in the kitchen.  
“Emmett and I are leaving,” Edward informed his father.  
“As planned,” Carlisle nodded. “When will you be back?”  
“Maybe late tonight, or tomorrow,” Edward shrugged.  
“Be careful,” Carlisle said, putting a hand on his son’s shoulder.  
Edward left the room, leaving Carlisle alone for about a second. Esme entered the kitchen. She was smiling, as always, but this time, she had something to really be happy about.  
“So?” she asked.  
“She’s sleeping.”  
“I will buy some food in the morning,” she said. “I don’t want her to eat cold pizza for breakfast,” she smiled, amused.  
“Thank you,” Carlisle smiled back.  
He would have gone with her if only he could leave Angie’s sides for so long. It had been clear from the beginning that Esme was happy for both him and Edward. Though, she would be happier if they didn’t beat themselves up so much about it.  
“She’s right, you know?” she said after a minute of silence.  
Carlisle frowned. “About?”  
“You’re not a monster,” she replied with a kind smile.  
Carlisle looked down, smiled, and chuckled. “I’d appreciate if you didn’t eavesdrop,” he said. “All of you.”  
He heard Alice giggle from afar. Esme couldn’t see it on his face, nor could they hear it in his tone, but he meant it. He wanted to protect Angie from everything. He wanted her to have the privacy she expected.  
“Sorry,” Esme smiled before she turned around and left the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry, this is really short. Thank you for the nice comments, it's very encouraging :)  
> I won't be posting anything before the end of August or the beginning of September.  
> Have a great summer!


	10. Responsibility

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, hello, bonjour,
> 
> First, I want to thank you for your nice comments, it's really encouraging! Thank you for letting me know!  
> Second, I want to apologize because this part is very short and I don't know when I'll be posting the next part :(  
> I hope you'll like it anyway!  
> Enjoy!

Angie was lying on the black couch in Carlisle’s office. Alone.  
She felt sick. Like a hangover.  
Her head hurt. She was confused. But she didn’t know what questions to ask.  
When she opened her eyes, she already knew she was the only one in the room. It was quiet.  
The day before, she accepted the fact that she was a vampire’s mate. Carlisle’s mate. And everything she told him was the truth, but it didn’t make it less scary.  
She was told they couldn’t live together, and she didn’t even try. It felt good to give in, to let it go. She wasn’t fighting it anymore. She was his and denying it only hurt her. It hurt both of them.  
Angie had mixed feelings. She was afraid, angry, confused, and still a little bit in disbelief. Of course, she knew it was true, that they were “meant to be”, which is what she was angry about. She wasn’t asked. She didn’t ask to be a telepath and she didn’t ask to be a vampire’s mate. It was a responsibility she wasn’t ready for. Carlisle was a responsibility she wasn’t ready for.  
He was broken. He needed fixing. He had to understand he wasn’t a monster, but how could Angie do that? How could she fix him, after all these years?  
No. She really wasn’t ready for this.  
Slowly, Angie sat up. She ran a hand through her hair and sighed.  
She knew what she had to do. She wasn’t going to let him down. Now, it had meaning. She could use her abilities and not suffer them. She knew now, her life had meaning. It was all about him. She was going to take care of him.  
And he was going to take care of her.


	11. No More Secrets

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, so it’s past midnight over here and I had a long week. This is probably full of grammatical horrors which will make your eyes bleed and I’m very sorry about that. Plus, I haven’t proofread it so I hope I didn’t write too many stupid things.
> 
> I really hope you’ll like it! Don’t hesitate to let me know what you think! Feedback is always appreciated and very encouraging!

Bella was staring at the screen of her laptop, leaning back on her seat, an empty bowl of cereal in her hand. She was alone in the house, Charlie left early in the morning to go fishing, like it would often do on Sundays, and her sister was still at the Cullens’s house. The Cullens, who, it turned out, were vampires.  
Jacob Black had told her everything the day before, at the La Push beach. It seemed ironic that she would believe the legends Jacob didn’t even believe himself. Maybe he was just that good of a story teller. Maybe she just had enough proof to know it was true. Not the wolf part, no, that she already forgot about. But what she was well aware of was that Edward was a vampire, and Angie was at his house right now, with the rest of his vampire family.  
“Stregoni benefici” was the only piece of information she found on the internet that made sense. It was the only definition that could describe Edward. Edward wasn’t a blood thirsty monster. She knew that. And she had been staring at the screen ever since. Reading the definition of Stregoni Benefici over and over again.  
An Italian vampire, said to be on side of goodness, and a mortal enemy of all evil vampires.  
Bella thought long and hard about it. It was ridiculous to even say it aloud. To even think about the possibility that Edward was a vampire. That vampires existed. And when, finally, she couldn’t deny it anymore, she was faced with a choice. Only two options seemed practical. The first was to take his advice, to be smart and avoid him as much as possible. To go back to ignoring him as far as she was able.  
But merely thinking about it was painful. Her mind rejected the pain, quickly skipping on to the next options.  
To do nothing different. After all, if he was something sinister, he’d done nothing to hurt her so far. In fact, she would be dead if it weren’t for him. So would Angie if it weren’t for Alice.  
Angie.  
Angie knew. She had known from the very beginning. How? And why? Why did they tell her?  
Bella had a feeling they didn’t tell her. She had a feeling Angie knew. She always knew things she wasn’t supposed to know. Always knew what people had in mind. What to say, what not to say. People call it a feeling, and that’s what Bella had always called it. Angie had a feeling. She had a feeling about everything.  
Now all she had to do was talk to her sister. Ask her why she didn’t trust her. Yes, she had been right, no, it wasn’t he secret to tell. All Bella wanted to know was how. How did she know? How did she find out the Cullens were vampires?  
////  
Angie was sitting on the kitchen counter, facing a smiling Carlisle. She had a bowl of ice cream in one hand, a spoon in the other. How Esme knew vanilla ice cream was her favorite favor would stay a mystery to Angie.  
The room was loud. Emmett and Edward were back from their “hunting trip”, and the tall vampire had been joking around with Angie ever since.  
“Rose didn’t give you too much trouble, did she?” he asked, knowing perfectly his girlfriend wouldn’t be happy about it. He was leaning against the wall, facing Carlisle’s back.  
Angie tilted her head on the side so she could see the vampire. “Not at all,” she shook her head.  
“Rosalie hasn’t been around much,” Carlisle said.  
“I’m surprised Alice hasn’t turned you into a doll yet,” Edward told Angie. He didn’t sound as miserable as he looked. Obviously, he wanted nothing more than to get out of there, and run to Bella’s bedroom.  
Angie frowned. “Wh- what do you mean?”  
Emmett let out a loud laugh which startled the human. “Alice has many plans for you, little one. Many, many plans,” he said, mischief clear in his voice.  
His statement terrified Angie. She could hear Emmett thinking about it as clear as crystal. Makeup and dresses. So many dresses.  
“Never,” Angie said. “Never, do you hear Alice?” she shouted.  
She heard the vampire laugh from the living room. “No need to shout,” Alice replied.  
Angie wondered if the house was always like this. Loud and bright. If her new friends always acted this way when they were alone, just playing and joking around, like the rest of the world didn’t exist. Like they weren’t different. In this house, they were normal. In this house they could be themselves.  
“It’s getting late.”  
Carlisle’s quiet voice stopped the others. Angie frowned and leaned forward, resting her forehead on his chest. He put his hand on the back of her head and stroke her hair twice before he kissed the top of her head.  
“Alice will drive you home.”  
“It’s still early,” Angie looked up at him with her big blue eyes and said.  
“It’s 6:30,” Carlisle said.  
“Just… a little longer. Please.” She looked like a little girl who wanted nothing more than another ride on the carousel.  
Carlisle stroke her cheek with his thumb, gave her a small smile and nodded. “Of course.”  
Emmett and Edward had silently left the room. Angie put the bowl down and pushed it aside before she slid her hands on Carlisle’s back and buried her head in his chest. Carlisle placed a kiss in her hair and inhaled the delicious smell that burnt his throat.  
They had spent their entire life alone, and now there were incapable of leaving each other.  
“I’ll see you tomorrow, right?” she asked.  
“Whenever you want,” he told her in a whisper.  
Alice silently stepped in the room and reluctantly interrupted them.  
“Come on, Angie. You’re dad’s expecting you.”  
Angie sighed. Carlisle took a step back to let her get off the counter. He placed his hands on each side of her waist and lifted her off and gently put her back on her feet. She put her hands over his, refusing to let go. She didn’t want to leave.  
“You’ll be fine,” Carlisle said before he kissed her forehead.  
She closed her eyes and enjoyed his cold lips on her skin. When he moved away, she put her left hand on his shoulder and tip toed to kiss his cheek. Her action surprised him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. He could feel her nose in his neck. She closed her eyes and breathed him in. He still smelled like old books and paper.  
“Go,” he said, letting go of her. “Don’t keep your father waiting. He’ll get worried.”  
She tried to smile as best she could before she turned towards Alice and followed her out the room. She gave one last look to Carlisle. She’ll see him again the same time the next day, but it felt like an eternity.  
////  
Bella had tried to keep her mind busy. She finished all her homework, took a walk in the forest, did the laundry, cleaned around the house, and cooked dinner.  
When Angie closed the front door and stepped in the kitchen, Charlie was sitting on the couch in the living room, in front of a game, with a beer in his hand.  
“Dinner’s almost ready,” Bella said. She was next to the table, an empty plate in her hand.  
“Hey,” Angie breathed out, as if she were out of breath. “How was your day?”  
Bella didn’t answer right away. As is she was looking for the right words. She looked away and put the plate on the table. “Illuminating,” she said, low, so low Angie almost didn’t hear her.  
“What do you mean?” she asked, letting her backpack fall on the floor, next to the stairs. She walked over to the shelves and took out three glasses.  
“Finished my homework,” Bella half lied. “What did you do this weekend? You were supposed to stay one night there.”  
“Um,” Angie said, awkwardly walking pass her sister. “You know, just talked,” she answered, which wasn’t a complete lie.  
“That’s it? You talked for two days?” Bella didn’t sound particularly angry. Just curious.  
“Yeah,” Angie shrugged and nodded, putting the glasses on the table. “Why?” she asked, looking up at her big sister.  
Bella stared silently at Angie, wondering if she should tell her what she knew, tell her that she knew. The moment wasn’t exactly the best, but Bella doubted there would ever be a good moment to talk about it.  
She took a look at the living room, to make sure that their father was still there, captivated by the game, and too far away to hear anything they were about to say.  
Bella sighed, she’d been waiting for this moment for days. She took a deep breath before she talked.  
“I know.”  
“You know what?” Angie asked, opening the bottle of water that was on the table.  
“I know the Cullens are vampires.”  
Angie’s heart skipped a beat. She stopped moving. She let go of the bottle and looked up at her sister. She was looking for a sign, anything, that could tell her if her sister was angry or scared or anything else. But all she saw on her sister’s face was a mix of nervousness and curiosity.  
“Wh- you do? H- how?” Angie stuttered.  
“Jacob Black told me.”  
“Jacob? Billy’s son?” Angie asked and her sister nodded. “Jacob knows the Cullens are vampires?”  
“No,” Bella shook her head. “He told me about the legends. Stories the whole reservation knows. He doesn’t even believe them himself. He wasn’t supposed to tell me any of it, he kinda broke the reservation “law” or something,” Bella blabbered, nervous.  
“So, they know but they don’t know…” Angie tried to make sense of it.  
“Anyway,” Bella said. “You’re not denying it. So, they are, aren’t they? Vampires, I mean.”  
Angie looked down and nodded. “Yeah…”  
“Ok,” Bella sighed, trying to take it in all over again. “The Cullens are vampires, and you’ve been in their house all weekend.”  
“They’re not…” Angie started to say but stopped when her sister looked up at her. She turned her head to make sure Charlie was still in the living room, and took a step towards Bella. “They don’t… eat people,” she whispered.  
“They don’t?” Bella asked and Angie shook her head. “How do they…. What do they….”  
“I shouldn’t be the one telling you,” Angie said. “You should ask them. Edward. You should ask Edward.”  
“How do you know? Why did they tell you and not me?”  
“They didn’t tell me,” Angie defended herself.  
“They didn’t? What, you just guessed?”  
“I…”  
It was one thing to talk about somebody else’s secret, but it was another to talk about her own. As surprised as she was that Bella knew and wasn’t angry about it, Angie still feared her sister’s reaction when she finds out she had been hiding her own secret from her for years.  
“What’s that smell Bells?” Charlie’s voice came from the couch.  
The smell suddenly hit the noses of the sisters. Bella had forgotten the steaks on the stove and they were almost burnt.  
“Dinner’s ready, dad,” Bella called, disappointed. The conversation was obviously over.  
Dinner past slowly. Too slowly. Bella kept staring at her sister who wouldn’t look up from her plate. Once they were done, Angie quickly excused herself and hurried in the bathroom, hoping she could dodge her sister’s questions for at least one more night. She grabbed a pair of mini shorts that were way too short for her to wear for doing anything else but sleep, and an old sleeveless top, so old it was barely fitting her anymore. Her mother had bought them for her in hope she would start dressing more like a girl but Angie never liked it, “too much cleavage,” she had complained to Renée, and, on top of it, it didn’t even cover the entirety of her waist.  
She locked herself in the bathroom, thrilled at the idea of a shower. The water was too hot and she stayed inside for too long. When she stepped out, the temperature of the room made her feel giddy. She put the shorts and the top on, then staggered out of the bathroom and into her bedroom. She closed the door behind her but couldn’t find the light switch. She moved her hand on the wall for a few seconds before giving up. She knew if she didn’t sit soon she would fall over. She tried to find her bed in the dark. It couldn’t be too difficult, the room wasn’t big and the bed was the first thing she could stumble into if she blindly wandered around. She felt so dizzy she tripped on her own feet. She let out a gasp and expected to fall over, head first, when she felt two hands grab her. Her head met with someone’s chest. The second her skin came in contact with his sweater, she knew it was him. She recognized the fabric, and his smell.  
“Carlisle!” she breathed out, looking up.  
“Careful,” he said. She could hear his amusement in his voice.  
“What are you doing here?” she asked, wrapping her arms around his neck. The room was poorly lighted by the moon. The sky was unusually clear.  
“I couldn’t wait tomorrow,” he whispered. “I can leave if you want.”  
“No, stay,” she said.  
“You’re hot, are you sick?” Carlisle noticed.  
“No, I just took a shower.”   
As she spoke, she remembered what she was wearing. She stepped back and instinctively crossed her arms over her chest and blushed. She wondered if Carlisle could see anything in such darkness. She heard movement coming from him. Her eyes were slowly adjusting to the lack of light. She saw him remove his brown sweater which he helped her in. She smiled as she slid her arms in the sleeves. The sweater was way too big for her, but she enjoyed the warmth of it, and its smell.  
“Thank you,” she shyly smiled. “I’m never giving it back.”  
Carlisle, who was now only wearing a white shirt, laughed. “As you wish,” he smiled, cupping her cheek with his left hand.  
A knock interrupted them. Carlisle quickly looked up before he vanished. Light filled the room as the door opened and Bella appeared.  
“Who are you talk-,” she started. “What are you doing in the dark?” she asked, turning the lights on.  
“I- I was about to go to bed, I’m tired,” Angie lied.  
Bella sighed. She stepped in the room and closed the door behind her. “You’re not going to bed before you tell me how you know. If they didn’t tell you, then how do you know?” She was clearly eager to know the truth. All of the truth. She didn’t even know what she wanted to know about.  
“Bella, I…” Angie sighed.  
“What are you wearing?” Bella asked, looking her sister up and down. “Whose sweater is that?”  
“Um,” Angie was conflicted. She could either tell her sister the truth or she could lie and deny it all.  
“It’s… Carlisle’s.”  
“Carlisle. As in, Dr. Carlisle Cullen?” Bella asked, confused. Angie nodded. “You stole Dr. Cullen’s clothes?”  
“I didn’t steal anything,” Angie said, offended.  
“Well, maybe Alice shouldn’t have given you her father’s clothes.”  
“Alice didn’t give it to me, he did.”  
“Why would he give you his sweater? Did you spill food on yourself?” Bella asked with a mocking tone.  
“No, I didn’t spill food, Bella,” Angie said, a little irritated.  
She walked over to her bed and sat on the edge of it. Bella sighed, giving up the matter. That wasn’t the reason why she was here. She joined her sister and sat next to her.  
“How did you find out they’re vampires?” she asked again, hoping she wouldn’t have to ask a third time.  
Silence settled as Angie tried to find the courage to speak. She was playing with the edge of the sweater, avoiding her sister’s gaze. Bella patiently waited, but every second that past made her more and more irritated.  
“I…” Angie finally said. “I heard it in their thoughts…”  
Bella laughed which startled her sister. “Funny. No, but, really. How do you know?”  
Angie frowned and finally looked up at her sister. Bella’s smile slowly disappeared as the look on her sister’s face showed her she wasn’t joking.  
“You… heard it… in their thoughts,” she repeated in disbelief.  
Angie nodded.  
“As in… you can hear other people’s thoughts.”  
Angie nodded again.  
“You can hear other people’s thoughts.”  
“Yes.”  
Bella stared wordlessly at her sister for what seemed an eternity.  
“What?” she merely said.  
“I… I can hear other people’s thoughts.”  
“You can- what?”  
“I can hear other people’s thoughts.”  
“Please stop saying that.”  
Angie looked down. She felt like she was about to cry. Bella didn’t believe her. She was probably thinking she was crazy.  
“Edward can hear other people’s thoughts too,” she said, hoping that would convince her.  
“He can what?” Bella asked, horrified. After everything she ever thought about him, she could die of embarrassment right here and then if it was the truth.  
“He told me how to control it. That’s why we’ve been… hanging out.”  
Bella stayed silent, looking at her sister like she didn’t know her, like she was a stranger. Second after second, the information went deeper and deeper into Bella’s mind, slowly turning from simple words to fact, and her sister was her sister again, she just knew something new about her. And about Edward.  
“Oh my God, he’s heard everything, hasn’t he?” Bella finally said. She got up and started pacing around the room.  
“Wh- what?”  
“Edward! He’s heard everything I ever thought about him!”  
“No, no he hasn’t.”  
“Oh my God…”  
“Bella calm down. He hasn’t heard anything. You’re the only person we can’t hear.”  
“Wh- what do you mean?”  
“I never could read your thoughts. Edward can’t either. We don’t know why.”  
“You… you can’t? Why? Is there something wrong with me?”  
Angie was surprised by her question. She started laughing, both relieved and amused.  
“What?” Bella asked.  
“I just told you Edward’s a vampire and we can hear other people’s thoughts, and you think there’s something wrong with you.”  
Bella stared for a few seconds before she started laughing too. “I suppose it’s a good thing, then,” she said, sitting back down on the bed.  
Angie smiled and nodded. Silence settled again, but this time, both sisters enjoyed it. Angie was relieved she had finally told her secret to her sister, and Bella was still trying to take the information in.  
“Why are you wearing Dr. Cullen’s sweater?” Bella asked, remembering how Angie had called him Carlisle and not Dr. Cullen.  
Angie looked up, both eager and nervous to talk about it with her sister. Bella immediately noticed the blush on her cheeks.  
“Remember when we first met him, at the hospital?”  
“You mean the day we almost died? Sure,” Bella joked.  
“Well… See, I’m going to try to explain it the way they explained it to me, okay?”  
Bella nodded.  
“Okay, so, vampires have mates. Like Alice and Jasper are mates.”  
“You mean, like soulmates?”  
“Yeah, exactly. And… when one of them is a vampire and the other is a human, then the human’s blood is… smells, very delicious to the vampire.”  
“Yeah, cause we’re basically their food,” Bella chuckled. She was trying not to be scared about that part.  
“Yeah, but it’s different. It smells like very, very good.”  
“Okay… what does it have to do with you wearing Dr. Cullen’s sweater?”  
“Well…,” Angie sighed, nervous. “I’m… I mean… Carlisle is… um… I’m his…”  
“Oh my God,” Bella breathed out. “You’re his soulmate?! Is that what you’re trying to tell me?”  
“Uh… mate. Yeah.”  
Bella’s mouth fell open. That was too much information. Way too much.  
“So, you’re like… dating? You’re dating Dr. Cullen?”  
“No,” Angie quickly said. “I mean… it’s… no… it’s… we haven’t… talked about… yeah, we’re like dating, I guess,” Angie shook her head. “I don’t know, we’re just… together, anyway, right?”  
“You’re asking me?”  
“I’m not… I don’t know,” she sighed. “It’s just all so new…”  
“I can imagine… It’s been like… two weeks.”  
“I know right,” Angie laughed nervously. “It’s been a hard few days…” she admitted.  
“Well, you could have told me,” Bella said, trying not to sound offended, and failing.  
“I didn’t want… I asked Edward many times to tell you. He didn’t want to.”  
“Why not? He doesn’t like me very much, does he?”  
Angie couldn’t help but laugh. “No, no. He likes you,” she chuckled. “He’s just… you should talk to him.”  
“Oh, will do!” Bella assured her. “Tomorrow.”  
“Hey, so, um… I really am tired, Bells…”  
“Oh right. Yeah, sure, I’ll go,” she said, getting up. Once she reached the door, she stopped and turned around. “So, how long have you been… hearing thoughts?”  
“Um, since I was like ten,” Angie cleared her throat and answered.  
“It’s been six years. Why… why haven’t you told me?”  
Angie uncomfortably looked at her sister for a few seconds before she answered. “Well, you were always the responsible one. I didn’t want to worry you even more.”  
“Well… you should have,” Bella said. “’night Angie.”  
“’night Bells…”  
As soon as she was alone, Angie took a deep breath, relieved. She felt mentally exhausted. That was one of the hardest thing she ever had to do.  
“You won’t be seeing Edward tomorrow.”  
Angie jumped, startled.  
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you,” Carlisle said, sitting next to her.  
“It’s okay.”  
“The sky is clear. Tomorrow will be sunny.”  
“Oh,” Angie said. “Will you ever show me why you can’t be in the sun?”  
“I will,” he smiled.  
“Did you hear all that?” Angie asked, even though she already knew the answer.  
“I did.”  
Angie nodded and looked down.  
“What are you gonna do tonight?” Angie changed the subject.  
“I was thinking I’d stay with you if you allowed me.”  
Angie smiled and nodded. “I’d like that.”  
Carlisle settled on the bed, his back against the wall, while Angie slid under the covers. She rested her head on his chest, and he placed a kiss in her hair before he put his left hand on her head. She took his right hand and intertwined her fingers with his.  
“Did Edward listen?” she asked.  
“He did.”  
“I hope he’s not mad. Maybe I shouldn’t have told her about him.”  
“He’s not mad. She already knew too much.”  
Angie sighed and closed her eyes. Carlisle started stroking her hair. As she started to fall asleep, a thought crossed her mind and got her worried.  
“You’ll be here when I wake up, right?” she asked.  
“I will,” he promised.  
“Good night, Carlisle.”  
“Good night, angel.”


	12. Animal Attack

Angie was sitting on her bed, alone, staring out the window. It was dark outside, clouds had come to cover the sky of Forks once again.  
She was wearing the same shorts as the night before, and Carlisle’s sweater. She couldn’t help but bring the sleeves to her nose, she couldn’t get enough of his smell.  
Bella had been impatient all day. Because of the sun, none of the Cullens had been at school that day, and for once, Bella wished it weren’t sunny. She had gone dress shopping with Angela and Jessica to Port Angeles, leaving Angie alone for the night, as Charlie and Carlisle had both had emergencies to attend to.  
The telepath sighed as she let herself fall back on the mattress. The last thing she wanted to do was fall asleep before Carlisle arrived.  
Suddenly, she heard a car stop in front of her house. She focused and managed to hear Edward’s worried thoughts, though she could only catch pieces of it, and couldn’t figure out what he was worried about.  
She waited a few minutes and listened to her sister walk up the stairs and stop at her door. She knocked twice before opening and entering the dark room.  
“I know you’re not sleeping,” Bella said.  
“I’m not,” Angie whined. “Carlisle isn’t here yet.”  
“I know. He was at the police station.”  
Fast, Angie sat up and turned on the lamp on her night table.  
“The police station?”  
“Yeah,” Bella sighed, she didn’t look happy, “dad’s friend, Waylon. He’s dead. Animal attack.”  
“He died?” Angie echoed.  
Bella nodded. “Dr. Cullen was there. He should be here soon though.”  
Angie chuckled. “I doubt he told you he was coming over.”  
“He didn’t. Edward did.”  
“Thanks Bell’s.”  
“’night Angie.”  
As soon as Bella was out of the room, Carlisle appeared.  
“Sorry to keep you waiting,” he slightly smiled.  
“Don’t worry about it,” Angie said as she moved to let him sit next to her. “You must have had a terrible night.”  
“I’ve seen worse,” Carlisle sighed. He looked worried.  
Angie couldn’t help but slip inside his head and read his mind, old habits die hard.  
“Vampires killed Waylon?” Angie found herself ask out loud, with fear in her voice.  
Carlisle’s face showed confusion for half a second before he realized she had read his mind once again.  
“Yes,” he nodded. “I wish you wouldn’t do that.”  
“I’m sorry, can’t help it sometimes.”  
“I don’t want you to be worried. We’ll make sure you and Bella are safe, I promise.”  
“I’m not worried,” she said as she settled in the bed.  
Carlisle moved so that she could rest her head on his chest, like he knew she liked to do. He started stroking her hair, hoping it would help her to sleep, hoping she wasn’t listening to his thoughts again, because he couldn’t help but worry about the vampires that were getting into town, about what would happen if she got hurt in anyway, what he would do if he lost her.  
He would probably lose his mind.


	13. Italian Food

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm pretty sure this is full of mistakes... very sorry about that!!

They all rapidly settled into a routine.

It seemed that things between Bella and Edward were happening much faster than between Angie and Carlisle. It wasn’t a mystery to the telepath why her relationship with her mate hadn’t taken the same path as her sister’s and Edward’s. For once, it wasn’t because Carlisle thought as himself as an unworthy monster, but because he was way too old and she was way too young. They belonged with each other and they belonged to each other, but they weren’t a couple yet. Not that kind of couple anyway. And that didn’t make any of them happy. But Carlisle, even though they had never spoken about it, knew waiting was the right thing to do. And as much as she knew it too, Angie didn’t like it one bit. “Unfair, was what it was.”

No matter, the four of them settled into the seemingly same routine. Every evening they would appear in their mate’s bedroom, lie down next to them and stay with them while they slept until morning, when they had to leave. Carlisle left for work, Edward came back with the Volvo to drive them to school. Angie would “have lunch” with Alice and Jasper. Bella would stay with Edward. And then he would drive them back home. And repeat.

Of course, Edward knew how much it bothered Angie that she couldn’t be with Carlisle, really “be” with Carlisle, but he had been smart enough so far to never mention it to her. And Angie was grateful for that.

As was usual on weekends, Angie stayed over at the Cullen’s house. She didn’t have all the responsibilities Bella took upon herself and she felt bad for not feeling bad about that. So usually, Bella would stay at home and clean, cook, do the groceries, finish up her homework and spend some time with Edward without Charlie knowing about it, of course.

But finally, this Saturday, Edward was taking Bella to his house, to meet Esme and his siblings. Bella didn’t see much of Alice or Jasper the way Angie did. She stayed alone with Edward and had never really met any member of his family.

All morning, Angie kept telling them not to cook for Bella. “She’ll probably eat before coming here, she knows you guys don’t eat,” she told them. She was standing on Carlisle’s left. He was cutting small pieces of chicken and had his back turned to Emmett and Esme.

“It’s fine,” Esme, who was grating cheese, looked up and smiled at her, “we’re also cooking for you.”

“I told you, you don’t have to that.” Angie had asked them many times to let her cook for herself but they always refused. “What if you cut yourself?” Carlisle had told her. And they had been cooking for her ever since, and every time there was way too much food for her to eat on her own.

“It’s just a good excuse for us to use the kitchen,” Carlisle said before he placed a kiss on her left temple.

“We’ve been using the kitchen for over a month now,” Rosalie muttered. She was standing at the other side of the counters, holding a bowl of salad in her hands. She had this unhappy look on her face, the only face Angie had ever seen Rosalie with, and she wasn’t trying to hide her annoyance. “Is she even Italian?” she asked, sighing over the Italian opera that had been playing in the kitchen for about an hour.

“Her name is Bella,” Emmett replied.

“We’re not… actually…” Angie started to say but she stopped the second Rosalie turned around and gave her an irritated look.

“I’m sure she’ll love it no matter what,” Carlisle said.

“Bella’s never been too picky with her food… She’ll eat anything.”

“Yeah,” Emmett chuckled. “Even dirt, I heard.”

“Where did you hear that?” Angie asked.

Emmett didn’t have the chance to reply as Rosalie sighed again. “Urgh, get away from that,” she said. “Here comes the human.”

Esme’s smile grew bigger and she put the grater down on the counter and walked towards Edward and Bella as they entered the room.

“Bella, we’re making italiano for you,” she said.

“Oh, mmh,” was Bella only answer. She was obviously uncomfortable.

“Bella this is Esme,” Edward introduced.

“Buongiorno,” Bella said.

“Molto bene,” Esme replied with a chuckle.

“Hey Bells,” Angie greeted her sister.

“Ange.”

“I hope you’re hungry,” Esme said.

“Yeah, absolutely,” Bella nodded.

“She already ate,” Edward told them.

 _“I told you so,”_ echoed in Edward’s head from Angie’s mind.

The next thing they heard was the bowl shatter in Rosalie’s hands and its pieces falling on the floor. Instinctively, though more by discomfort than by fear, Angie stepped closer towards Carlisle. She put her left hand on his back and he lifted his arm to let her slid by his side. Her right hand came to rest on his chest as he placed his arm possessively around her waist.

“Perfect!” Rosalie said, giving Bella a nasty look.

“Yeah, because… I, it’s just, I know, I know that you guys don’t eat so…”

“Of course,” Esme immediately intervened, “it’s very considerate of you.”

“Just ignore Rosalie, I do,” Edward said.

“Yeah, let’s just keep pretending that this isn’t dangerous for all of us,” the blonde vampire continued as Emmett came by her side.

“I would never tell anybody anything,” Bella said.

“She knows that,” Carlisle replied which made her look up at him. That’s when she saw them. Actually “saw” them. Carlisle and Angie, in each other’s arms. She doesn’t know why the image “bothered” her. Not that it did bother her. But it did make her feel something for a few seconds, something she couldn’t identify. Did she feel protective towards her little sister? Did she want to grab Carlisle by the shirt and yell at him that if he ever hurt Angie she’d kill him herself not that she actually could? Yeah, she wanted to do all that.

“Yeah, well, the problem is that you two have gone public now, so…”

“Emmett,” Esme cut him off with a disapproving tone.

“No she should know,” Rosalie said, not hiding her anger.

Bella gave the blonde vampire a funny look. “I do know,” she said. “Angie’s been coming here every weekend for weeks now. I’m not stupid, the possibility of my little sister actually becoming your dinner didn’t just cross my mind.”

“Bella!” Angie shouted, astonished by her sister’s unusual rudeness.

“It’s fine,” Carlisle said as he looked down at Angie and gave her a small smile. “She’s right. This is more dangerous for you than for us.”

Bella’s very brief bravery was already gone and she felt bad for having insulted them the way she did. “I didn’t mean… Not that, you would, it’s just…” she stuttered.

“It’s only natural,” Carlisle smiled. “Thinking this way. It’s your survival instinct. I wish Angie had one,” he tried to joke.

“Hey!” Angie frowned and tapped his chest with the back of her hand.

Carlisle chuckled before he kissed her forehead.

It was so weird for Bella to watch this. She had known for weeks now that they were together but actually seeing it was different.

“Hi Bella!” a happy female voice said as two other vampires entered the kitchen. “I’m Alice,” she introduced herself as she walked up towards her, “but you already knew that,” she said as she hugged her.

Everybody was surprised by the vampire’s action. Strangely, Edward seemed more uncomfortable than Bella.

“Alice, what are you…” Edward started to say.

“It’s okay. Bella and I are gonna be great friends!”

An awkward silence settled in the room.

“Sorry,” Carlisle said, “Jasper is our newest vegetarian, it’s a little difficult for him.”

“It’s okay Jasper,” Alice said. “You won’t hurt her.”

“All right, uh, I’m gonna take you on a tour of the rest of the house,” Edward said before he gave a look to his siblings and turned around, taking Bella with him.

Emmett chuckled “You’re sister’s a badass,” he said, surprise clear in his voice.

Angie raised an eyebrow. “My sister? A badass? You mean, the girl who hurts herself with the racket every time she plays badminton?”

Emmett laughed. “All right, maybe not badass then. But sassy.”

“Clean this up. Now.” Esme ordered Rosalie, pointing at the mess that was at the blonde’s feet.

Angie’s phone rang, alerting her of a new text message.

“Is everything okay?” Carlisle asked.

“Yeah, it’s Emily. She wants me to come over tonight. I told her I’d help her with our English assignment…”

“You can’t go,” Alice whined. “We’re gonna play baseball tonight!”

Angie chuckled. “You really don’t know me, do you?”

“It’s fine,” Carlisle said. “I’ll come by after.”

Angie smiled and nodded. “I know,” she said. “So, how much of this Italian food do I have to eat?”


	14. James

_Well, shit._

Bella had never had much luck while playing any sport, but baseball would be the one in which she had had the worst luck so far. And she wasn’t even playing.

“I’m Laurent. And this is Victoria, and James.”

They had just arrived from the forest, appearing behind the mist, and made their way onto the middle of the field in only a few seconds.

She was standing close to Edward, hiding a little behind him on his left. She had to keep her eyes down. Even though the Cullens didn’t have the same red eyes as the nomads, Bella’s eyes color was too obviously different.

“I’m Carlisle. This is my family.”

Bella couldn’t even imagine how relieved he must have been that Angie wasn’t there. Probably as much as she regretted to have joined them.

“Hello,” Laurent smiled. He obviously didn’t want any trouble, the three of them all seemed curious about the yellow eyed vampires who were standing before them. Victoria and James, on the other hand, looked like they both liked to cause a little trouble.

“I’m afraid your hunting activities have caused something of a mess for us.”

“Our apologies,” Laurent immediately said, he looked sincere. “We didn’t realize the territory had been claimed.”

“Yes. Well, we maintain a permanent residence nearby.”

“Really?” Laurent asked, obviously surprised. “Well, we won’t be a problem anymore. We were just passing through.”

“The humans were tracking us, but we led them east. You should be safe,” the red-haired said with a proud grin.

“Excellent,” Carlisle smiled and nodded politely.

“So,” Laurent chuckled. “Could you use three more players?”

Bella could feel the tension and she wondered how the three nomads hadn’t heard her heartbeat yet. Not that she wanted that. She noticed Edward was focused on James, as if he was listening. She wished she knew what made him so tense, so… afraid.

“Sure, why not?” Carlisle agreed. “A few of us were leaving, you could take their place. We’ll bat first,” he said before he threw the ball at Laurent, but it’s Victoria who caught it.

“I’m the one with the wicked curved ball,” she said which made Emmett and Jasper laughed.

“Oh well I think we can handle that,” the empath said.

They all started laughing and moving away, except for James and Edward. Bella tried to step back and take Edward with her, but he wasn’t moving. As she turned around, the wind blew her hair and brought her scent to James, who caught it instantly.

“You brought a snack.”

_Well, shit._

Everything after that happened really fast. Edward pushed Bella towards Esme and the rest of the family just tried to shield her from the nomads.

“A human?” Laurent said as he positioned himself next to James.

“The girl is with us,” Carlisle told them. “I think it best if you leave.”

A few seconds of silence passed, they seemed like hours to Bella.

“I can see the game is over,” Laurent said. “We’ll go now.” He was holding his hands up, trying to show them they were cooperating and that there wouldn’t be any problem.

Laurent stepped back but James and Victoria didn’t move and stayed in their offensive positions.

“James,” Laurent called.

Both vampires hissed as they moved back and turned around.

“Get Bella out of here,” Carlisle said to Edward. “Go.”

The next thing she knew, Edward had caught her arm and dragged her to the car in which they had come with. As he drove away, he couldn’t stop talking about leaving Forks, moving as far away as possible.

“He’s not gonna stop,” he said. “I read his mind. My reaction on the field set him off. I just made this his most exciting game ever. He’s never gonna stop,” he repeated.

“What should we do?” Bella asked, terrified, hoping there was a way for this to stop in a not too bad way.

“We have to kill him,” Edward answered. “Rip him apart and burn the pieces.”

“Where are we going?” she asked when she didn’t recognize the road.

“Away from Forks. We’ll get a ferry to Vancouver.”

“I have to go home, now! You have to take me home!” she demanded.

“You can’t go home. He’s gonna trace your scent there, it’s the first place he’s gonna look!”

“But my dad is there! And Angie! We can’t just… They could get killed because of us!”

“Just let me get you out of here first, all right?”

“It’s Angie! And my dad! We have to go back! Edward! Bring me home!”

The plan was simple. Go home, tell Charlie she was leaving back to Phoenix, quickly pack a bag and get the hell out of there.

Only, when they arrived at the Swan residence, the street was lit with blue and red colors, and there were police cars everywhere.

“Oh my God,” Bella breathed out, almost crying, getting out of the car as soon as Edward slowed down. It’s amazing that she didn’t fall over, as she ran out of the car while it was still moving.

“Dad!” she shouted as she ran passed between two police cars and saw him standing next to her red truck, talking to two coworkers of his.

“Bella!”

As soon as he saw her, his worry turned into relief that lasted for about a second.

“Where have you been?” he asked. “I’ve been calling you!”

“I… sorry, my phone must have… what… what’s going on?” she asked, looking around her, seeing all the policemen in front of her house.

“It’s Angie,” Charlie said. “I… I heard her scream and I… when I got out of the house she wasn’t there, just…” he looked down and Bella saw he was holding Angie’s backpack in his hand.

“Oh my God,” she breathed out, tears filling her eyes. This was all her fault.

“I think whoever took her also killed Waylon,” Charlie said with a trembling voice. “I think he’s coming after her because of me.”

“No, dad it’s not your fault,” Bella instantly said as she hugged him.

“How did you come back? Did Edward bring you here?”

“Yes,” she said as she pointed at the jeep.

“I think you should go with him. Stay at his house tonight, until it’s safe here,” he said. “I can’t lose you too, just… just go and be careful okay?”

“But… what about Angie?”

“We’ll be looking for your sister, Bella, don’t worry. I won’t stop until I find her,” he promised, to her and to himself. “Go now.”

Bella hugged her father one more time before she rushed back towards the car.

“He took her,” she said as he drove away. “What are we gonna do?”

Edward sighed. “She’s probably safe.”

“Probably?!”

“He probably took her so he can have you in exchange.”

“What if he didn’t? What if he… what if she’s dead?” she asked as tears fell down her cheeks.

“She’s not,” he shook his head. “I read in his mind… It’s you he wants. He took Angie to get to you. I’m sure of it.”

“This is all my fault,” she whispered.

“No, it’s not. It’s my fault, it’s my fault you were there…”

“What are we gonna do now?” she sniffed.

There was a moment of silence before Edward answered.

“I don’t know.”


	15. Tic Toc

There was no doubt in Angie’s mind that the situation she was in was going to end badly.

James and Victoria hadn’t said a word to her and yet she knew everything.

When James appeared behind her as she was about to step into her house, she first heard James’s thoughts before she felt his hands on her. She barely had time to scream before his hand covered her mouth and his over arm trapped her. The wind hit her face as panic made her uselessly try to fight the vampire off.

She knew he was taking her to the high school where some other vampire named Victoria was waiting for him.

“Smell that?” he said as he joined the red-haired in the reception. The vampire had just wrecked the place and the floor was covered with files and paper. “That’s the little sister,” he told his mate as he let go of Angie who fell down at his feet.

“She cute,” Victoria grinned back at James. “Can we eat her?”

“No. We’re gonna make a deal.”

Victoria chuckled. “That boy will never give his human away. But it’ll be fun to watch,” she said as her eyes landed on Angie.

The telepath crawled away until her back hit the wall. She watched carefully the two predators standing before her, knowing perfectly that she could die any second now if Bella didn’t come to take her place. And that was the last thing she wanted.

At that moment, she just wanted to be with Carlisle, to see him, to hear his voice, to listen to him saying that everything was going to be okay. But she couldn’t think about anything else than his safety. It didn’t matter what happened to her as long as Bella and Carlisle were safe. But she knew he would do anything to save her, and that scared her more than James and Victoria.

“Let’s make a call, shall we?” James said as he took Angie’s cellphone out of his jeans pocket.

As he searched through her phone for Bella’s number, he frowned, obviously surprised to see Carlisle’s number in there.

“Interesting,” he whispered as he scrolled up every private message the two mates had shared. “Seems like their strange diet isn’t the only odd thing about this coven,” he told Victoria. “She’s Carlisle’s human.”

“Really?” Victoria arched an eyebrow. “Wonder what they do with their humans if they don’t eat them,” she said, but she wasn’t actually curious.

“Oh I see,” James grinned after he read another message. “They’re mates.”

“That explains it,” Victoria nodded. She looked like she was getting bored. “Why haven’t they turned them yet, then?”

“Who knows what the yellow-eyes think?” James rolled his eyes. “I think it’s time we call for a ransom, what do you think?” he said before he pressed the call button.

* * *

When Bella and Edward stepped in the Cullen residence they met face to face with Carlisle and Laurent. Edward instinctively brought Bella behind him, ready to attack to defend her.

“Wait,” Carlisle stopped him. “He came to warn us about James.”

“This isn’t my fight,” the nomad vampire said. “And I’ve grown tired of his games. But he’s got unparalleled senses, absolutely lethal. I’ve never seen anything like him in my 300 years. And the woman, Victoria, don’t underestimate her.”

Carlisle watched Laurent leave and that’s when he saw that Bella didn’t have any bags with her.

“I thought you were packing to leave,” he said.

“Carlisle…” Edward started. “We can’t leave,” he said, as painfully as it was to stay in Forks and put Bella in so much danger. “There’s been a change of plans.”

“What happened?” he asked, suddenly worried. He could see on their faces that something was really wrong and his instinct immediately made him think of his mate. “Where’s Angie?”

“Carlisle, I’m sorry,” Edward said with a weak voice. “He took her.”

Bella watched as Carlisle’s face rapidly changed. It was beyond worry at this point. It was a mix of pure fear and anger. He looked broken and furious. He didn’t look anything like himself.

“But we’re gonna get her back,” Bella quickly told him, trying to reassure him. “It’s me he wants. I’ll just take her place.”

“No you’re not!” Edward immediately said. “I’m not gonna let you go anywhere near him.”

“You don’t have to let me do anything,” Bella shouted. “You can’t tell me what to do! Angie’s my sister and I’m not going to let her die!”

“What’s going on? I thought we had to leave right now?” Esme said as she appeared in the hall followed by the rest of the Cullens.

“He took Angie,” Carlisle told them, despair clear in his voice.

“Oh my God,” Alice breathed out, more confused than worried, wondering why she hadn’t seen it coming.

“He wants to make an exchange,” Jasper guessed.

They were interrupted by the ringtone of Carlisle’s cellphone. He couldn’t have taken it out of his pocket any faster.

“Angie?”

James’s inhuman laugh resounded in the vampires’ ears. “Sorry no. But don’t worry. She’s fine. For now…”

“I want to talk to her,” Carlisle growled.

James sighed. “He wants to hear your pretty voice,” he said as he held the phone near Angie’s face.

“Carlisle…” she cried.

“See, she’s fine,” James interrupted before Carlisle could say anything.

“What do you want?”

“You know what I want.”

“You can’t have her,” Edward snarled. Carlisle shot a look he never thought he would ever have. He never thought he would ever want to take an innocent human, his son’s mate, to a psychotic vampire to get killed. And yet, it was all he could think about at that moment. He didn’t care what happened to Bella as long as Angie was safe.

“Well, I’m eating somebody tonight. And if it’s not the big sister, it’s gonna be the little one. Call back when you’ve decided who’s gonna be on my menu. I like midnight snacks,” he told them before he hang up.

“Call him back!” Bella shouted.

“No!” Edward shouted back.

“You have no right to tell me what to do! This is my sister, this is my life!”

“Wait!” Jasper stopped them. “Alice, what are you seeing?”

“They’re at the high school,” Edward read his sister’s mind. “They were trying to get information on you and your family, they went through the school’s documents. They’re holding Angie in the reception.”

“Let’s go.” Carlisle barely had time to finish his words before he vanished, followed by his family.

“Go with them,” Esme told Edward. “They’ll need you. I’ll stay with her and make sure she’s safe, I promise.”

Edward hesitated for a moment. “You have to go, please,” Bella begged. “Just make sure that Angie is safe.”

Edward sighed, defeated. He kissed Bella’s forehead before he looked up at Esme. “Watch over her,” he said.

“I will, I promise,” she tried to give him a reassuring smile. “Go.”

* * *

It had been half an hour since James had warned the Cullens of what would happen if they didn’t call him back before midnight.

Every minute that passed made both vampires more bored, and more irritated. And every minute that passed made Angie more scared, and more relieved. She was afraid they would actually do it: sacrifice Bella to save her.

The telepath had been crying for a few minutes, sniffing and breathing loudly, and it was getting on Victoria’s nerves.

“I swear to whatever God there is that if you don’t stop right now I’ll eat you!” she threatened as she took a step forward.

“Stay away from me!” Angie shouted. She watched as Victoria’s eyes grew big. The red-haired did step back, just like Angie wanted.

“What the hell?” Victoria yelled. James watched the strange scene with confusion. “I can’t move!”

It took James a few seconds to guess what was happening. He chuckled, then grinned: “You’re a gifted little human, aren’t you?”

Angie couldn’t believe it. She had just compelled Victoria the way she had compelled professor Varner on her first day.

“James!” Victoria shouted, angry.

James sighed and rolled his eyes. “Undo it,” he ordered Angie.

She gave him a puzzled look, which only irritated him more. He stepped forward, which was a terrible idea.

“Stop!” Angie yelled, and the vampire stopped.

“Now, I’m definitely killing you,” James threatened as he looked down at his feet, unable to move.

Angie couldn’t think rationally and even though, deep down, she knew there was no way she could run away from a vampire, she hoped that whatever she did would hold them long enough for her to get to safety.

She rose to her feet and ran as fast as she could. She had never run so fast, she ran as if her life depended on it. And it did.

She practically ripped the handle off the door as she exited the reception. She ran in the hallways, almost tripping over her own feet. She was running inside the school as if she was discovering the place for the first time. She didn’t recognize the building, she felt like she was trapped inside a horror movie and she was running pointlessly inside a haunted house she would never get out of alive.

She had almost reached the exit when someone suddenly appeared in front of her. The sudden appearance made her scream her lungs out and she stepped back, terrified, before she recognized the person who was in front of her.

“Carlisle!” she breathed out, tears of relief falling down her cheeks.

“Angie! Are you okay?” he asked, alarmed, as he took her face in his hands, checking her out for any injuries.

“Get me out,” she cried. “Get me out!” she started shouting and hitting him.

“Where are they?” Carlisle asked. “What happened?”

“I don’t know,” she cried, too scared and confused to even try and make sense of it, “they might still be stuck in the reception,” she said. “Please, get me out,” she begged, her hands fisting his shirt. “Get me out,” she wailed.

Emmett, Jasper, Edward, Rosalie and Alice were all standing at the other end of the hallway and nodded at Carlisle before they ran towards the reception.

“Come on,” Carlisle said before he lifted her off her feet. The next second, he was standing outside the school, with Angie in his arms. She buried her head in his chest and cried loudly, getting it all out of her system. “You’re okay,” he whispered, more for himself than for her, then he kissed the top of her head. He sat down on the grass and started moving back and forth, hoping the movement would soothe her.

A couple of minutes later, he saw whom appeared to be Victoria get out of the high school and run the other way. It took everything he had in him not to go after her and kill her himself.

“You’re okay,” he repeated as he tightened his hold on her. “You’re okay.”


	16. March 28th

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long!

It was dark, as always, in Carlisle’s office.

A bed had been added between the shelves and the books.

Angie was lying there, on this Sunday morning, her head resting on Carlisle’s chest, her eyes half opened with bags under them due to a severe lack of sleep.

She was barely aware of Carlisle’s arms wrapped protectively around her tiny body, but she knew he was there.

It had been two weeks now since what they called the “James incident” and still, Angie couldn’t sleep.

She was playing that night in her mind over and over again. Every time she closed her eyes she was back in the reception, facing two vampires, ready to kill her at any second. She was afraid to go back to school. To walk through the hallways where she thought she was going to die.

Charlie’s worry hadn’t diminished, despite the story the Cullens had made up and made Angie tell the police. She never saw his face, only heard his voice, he was on the phone and left her in the reception where he thought she was unconscious. When she woke up alone she made a run for it. Ran through the parking lot until she reached a payphone and called her father.

Charlie was too relieved to question her story. Angie spent the night at the hospital. Charlie and Bella never left her side. Edward came by from time to time to update Carlisle, even though all he could say was “she’s still sleeping”.

She went home on Sunday afternoon, where she spent the rest of the day in bed, with Carlisle. She didn’t go to school that week. She was afraid her distress would make it hard to focus and to be overwhelmed by her classmates’ thoughts, once again.

The second week though, she had no excuse, and she knew if she stayed at home Charlie would worry.

Everything came back to normal… ish. She was still having lunch with Alice and Jasper, people were still staring at them even though most of the school decided to focus on Bella and Edward, who were inseparable, and, of course, Carlisle was with Angie every night, where else would he be?

Angie was exhausted. She had nightmares every time she fell asleep. Carlisle “prescribed” sleeping pills that seemed to help, but the nightmares were still happening.

It was around 9AM when Esme entered the room. She came in with a large plate which contained waffles, strawberries, hot green tea and fresh orange juice: “everything a healthy breakfast should be” she said, as if the vampire who never ate knew what she was talking about.

“You didn’t have to do that,” Angie yawned as she sat up.

“It’s my pleasure,” Esme smiled before she put the plate above the telepath’s knees.

“Thank you, Esme,” Carlisle tried to smile at his friend.

Esme nodded before she left the room.

“You need to eat.”

“It smells good,” Angie smiled weakly before she took the small fork and ate a strawberry.

Afterwards, Angie asked if she could use their bathroom and Carlisle was more than happy to draw her a bath, reminding her that Alice had bought toiletries for her, and Bella. Cherry flavor, of course.

She fell asleep in the bath, it was the best sleep she had had in two weeks. She didn’t even have a nightmare.

The Cullens were determined to make her feel better and even Jasper had agreed to try and help.

“Don’t cheat,” he told her as they were starting a game of chess.

She was helped by Carlisle, she had never played chess and had no idea how to play that game. Of course, she lost the four games she played, but at least, she didn’t cheat.

She spent the rest of the afternoon with Alice, in her bedroom, and to the vampire’s delight, Angie agreed to let her dress her up and even do her makeup.

“You’re gonna be so pretty,” Alice shrieked as she threw a dozen dresses on the white couch of her bedroom.

Angie raised an eyebrow.

“I mean, not that you’re not pretty now… ‘cause you are! You’re just gonna be prettier!” she added, quickly.

Angie sighed. “Can’t you do this with Bella?”

“I’m still trying to get her to agree to it. Anyway, I have an idea,” she started to say, but then another thought came to her mind, “here, try this one.”

Alice handed a sleeveless white dress to Angie. It had rose patterns around the bottom and it was too short to cover her knees.

“See? It fits perfectly!” Alice said enthusiastically. “Anyway, I was saying, tomorrow we’re gonna skip class and I’ll take you shopping!”

“What?” Angie breathed out, horrified at the mere idea, “I can’t skip class! My dad will kill me! We’ll get in trouble!”

“Relax,” Alice rolled her eyes, amused, “you’re not gonna get in trouble, I already asked Charlie.”

“You… you talked to my dad?” _Again?_

“Yeah! I told him maybe it’ll do you some good, and he agreed.”

“Is Bella coming too?”

“I can only handle one of you at the time,” Alice chuckled. “And the best part is, Carlisle’s paying.”

“No,” Angie disapproved immediately, “I can pay for my own clothes.”

“Not where we’re going shopping,” Alice said, “there’s nothing in those shops that cost less than three figures.”

“Then, take me somewhere I can afford, Alice, or I’m not coming.”

“What’s your problem? It’s just money,” Alice whined.

“I’m not taking your money, I’m not taking Carlisle’s money, okay.”

“He doesn’t mind! It was his idea, plus he has plenty of money.”

“Keep it, I don’t want it.”

“You’re no fun,” Alice pouted. “What are we gonna tell your dad?”

Angie rolled her eyes. “Fine, I’ll come with you, but I will buy my own clothes and it doesn’t matter if I come home empty handed. I have all I need at home anyway.”

“You can’t do that!” Alice said, “What’s the point of you even coming?”

“Alice.”

The vampire and the telepath turned their heads towards the door, where Carlisle was standing. He leaned his right shoulder against the door frame and crossed his arms over his chest.

“It’s fine,” Carlisle told his “daughter”. “But you know, I really don’t care about the money,” he told Angie.

“I don’t need your money,” Angie told him, “I don’t want your money.”

“Little human got her pride,” Alice mumbled.

“Yeah, sorry I can’t be bought,” Angie replied with an annoyed tone.

“We’re not trying to “buy” you,” Carlisle said.

“Yeah, we already got you,” Alice joked.

Carlisle chuckled. He looked down when Angie shot her angry eyes at him.

“Actually, _he_ already got me,” Angie corrected Alice.

“Oh, that’s right, and one day, you’re gonna be my mom,” Alice laughed.

Angie gasped. “Nobody will ever buy that! When are you gonna turn me, when I’m 40?”

Angie was waiting for an answer until the silence that she met with made her realize: what could they answer to that? Nobody was smiling anymore, and as time passed, awkward turned to uncomfortable.

“I mean,” Angie started to say, “not that we have to talk about it,” she cleared her throat.

“Yeah, no,” Carlisle nodded, “we don’t have to talk about it…”

“Now,” Angie completed his sentence, “but uh…, yeah…, so… shopping! Sounds fun! …and uh…, your bank account’s gonna make you wish you never met me,” she tried to joke.

“Yay!” Alice shrieked again, which startled Angie, again. “So, it’s settled! We’re gonna have so much fun!”

Alice was getting excited. She hugged Angie, and as the telepath hugged her back she looked back at the door, and Carlisle was gone.


	17. What about the future?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER: This fic has always been about Carlisle and Angie. I know some of you had problems with Angie being only 16. If after reading this chapter you feel like you should leave some stupid comments about how Angie is too young and it’s wrong and bla bla bla, just don’t. This is fiction. Their situation is extremely particular considering they’re mates and Carlisle is a vampire, so if you have a problem with that, I’ll just remind you that Edward was over a hundred years old and Bella was “only” 17 in the first book/movie.

It was dark in Angie’s bedroom. The little bedside lamp weakly lit the small room, acting more like a night light than anything else. There was no more space left as shopping bags were scattered everywhere. A box had fallen off of a bag from the desk and a pair of shoes was lying carelessly on the floor. They were high-heeled black pumps that Angie would never wear, or even dream to wear, and that Alice had insisted on buying, along with a beautiful black dress that looked like it came right from the wardrobe of a Bond girl, and that was so long it was impossible to see the shoes anyway. The chair was covered with dresses stacked on each other, the wardrobe overflowed with clothes Angie never thought she’d ever own and that were way too fancy for Forks or for a sixteen year old teenage girl like her. Of course, Alice and Rosalie wore these kind of clothes all the time.

“Now you’ll dress like a Cullen,” Alice said with a big happy smile, as she paid for it all.

It was as if the vampire was trying to turn the telepath into one of theirs, but not in the way Angie wanted. It was all she could think about since she had inadvertently brought up the subject of her transformation the day before. She knew she was going to become a vampire eventually, because she was Carlisle’s mate, and he was never going to change. Carlisle will stay 23 forever, and she didn’t want to grow up to ever be 24. Bella also thought about it, and her sister knew it, even though they had never talked about it. She knew Edward had a problem with it. He didn’t want to turn her, to make her a “monster” like him. And she knew Carlisle felt exactly the same way.

As she laid in her bed, in the arms of her mate, she could feel his hard and cold body as she listened to the silence in his chest.

“Do you have a heart?” she suddenly asked. It had escaped her, she had thought out loud. And she was too tired to care.

“What do you mean?” Carlisle asked, confused, and suddenly worried.

“I didn’t mean it like that,” Angie said as she brought herself up on her elbows. “I meant, your actual heart. It’s not beating.”

“I’m dead,” he merely said as he gently tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

Angie stayed quiet as she stared into her mate’s eyes.

“You’re a doctor. Did you find any scientific explanation for… vampirism?”

A small and sad smile appeared on Carlisle’s face.

“No.”

“Right,” she sighed, “you think you’re evil,” she rolled her eyes. “So, it’s like… magic? Do you think there are other… supernatural creatures in the world?”

“You mean witches?”

“Yeah, or… anything, really. Other than humans.”

“I know for a fact that werewolves, or shifters, do exist.”

“Werewolves?” Angie repeated, a little too loud. She was supposed to be sleeping.

“Yes,” Carlisle chuckled.

“Have you ever met one? Aren’t werewolves dangerous for vampires?”

“They are,” he nodded. “And I have met some, yes.”

“Wh- when? Where?”

“We can talk about it later, you need to rest.”

“But…” she was about to protest but she yawned, proving Carlisle right.

The vampire chuckled. “See?”

Angie sighed, giving up. “It’s not fair,” she whined.

Carlisle smiled, amused, before he kissed her forehead. “We’ll have time to talk about it later,” he said.

“Fine.”

She kissed his cheek before she settled back into his arms. “Good night Carlisle,” she yawned again.

“Good night, angel.”

As tired as she was, her mind refused to stop working, and she couldn’t help but think about what had been troubling her for a while now. She had tones of questions, and werewolves were only at the bottom of the list. She was a teenager, and she had questions every teenager with a crush would have, except her crush was her mate, and he was a vampire, and he was centuries old, even though she chose to look at it like he was “only” 23. But even if he was “only” 23, she was only 16, and she knew that was a huge problem. For him _and_ for her. She wished she were older. She wished she were 18, so that neither of them would be afraid to say what they wanted to say and to do what they wanted to do.

She was 16, and she had never had a boyfriend before. And Carlisle was her first, and he will be her last. And he’s not even her boyfriend yet, and she doubted he would ever be. He is her mate. He is _hers_. And even though she had only met him three months ago, she loved him, and she had no doubt about that. She just wished she could say it aloud.

“What’s wrong?” he suddenly asked.

She looked up at him with a confused look.

“I can hear your heartbeat,” he said. “Are you okay?”

“Yes I’m fine,” she whispered.

She never thought she would be the possessive type. But then, she never thought she’d have a mate. Maybe all mates felt this way. She had a feeling they did, seeing how Edward was with Bella.

He started stroking her hair with his left hand, hoping it would soothe her, and make her feel better about whatever was troubling her.

“You know you can tell me anything,” he said.

“Can I?” she said, after a moment of silence. It was more of a rhetorical question than an actual one.

“Of course.”

She thought long and hard about it but she was too tired to think straight or make any reasonable choice and she was too tired to even notice.

She didn’t move, she was staring at nothing as he kept stroking her hair and her lips started to move and sound came out of it.

“I love you.”

It was like the planet had stopped spinning. Carlisle’s heart would have stopped if it were still beating. Angie shyly and slowly looked up as Carlisle’s hand was suddenly out of her hair and he wasn’t saying anything.

Her eyes met his. She didn’t know what to expect. She fought hard the desire to read his mind. She knew it was wrong and she was too scared to find out what he was really thinking at the moment. It took all the courage that was left in her to speak again.

“I don’t want to wait two years to be with you, to really _be_ with you. I see Bella with Edward and I just…” she shook her head and took a deep breath, “it’s not fair that we can’t be like them just because you’re five years too old and I’m two years too young! We’re the same!”

Carlisle suddenly took Angie by the waist and sat up. He wiped a tear off her cheek and that’s when she realized she was crying.

“I’m over three centuries too old,” he said.

“That doesn’t count,” Angie disagreed with a shaky voice. “Edward’s over a hundred years old!”

“Edward’s 17.”

“And you’re 23,” she said and she saw him frowned. “I don’t care how old you are! It doesn’t matter… does it?”

Carlisle sighed but stayed silent. The thought that he didn’t love her back grew bigger each second that passed.

Angie never thought silence could hurt that much.

“I thought maybe in two years you would have changed your mind,” Carlisle finally whispered, “I thought maybe eventually you would have chosen life over death. Over me.”

Angie gasped.

“I meant what I said. I’m yours. But you don’t have to be mine.”

“I know I don’t have to!” she told him, “I know you’d let me go if that’s what I wanted. But I don’t want to go. And I’m not going anywhere, Carlisle. You’re stuck with me for the rest of your immortal life! And I’m stuck with you for the rest of mine.”

“You’re too young to know what you want,” he said.

“So you do have a problem with my age,” she whispered.

“You had all your life to live before you met me. A normal human life.”

“I’m a telepath, Carlisle! I would have probably killed myself because of the pain before I even graduated high school. Or I would’ve gone mad! I would have never made it if I hadn’t met you! I was such a mess. My life is a thousand times better with you in it. I may be young but I know what I want. And I won’t change my mind. I’m your mate and I belong to you. I want to be with you! Don’t you want to be with me?”

“Of course I want to be with you,” he said, “but I’m not sure you understand what you’re giving up on.”

“My stupid mortal life, my family and food,” she answered, “I’ve been thinking about it for a few weeks, I know what it means to be with you and I don’t care.”

“And kids,” he reminded her. “You won’t be able to have any children once you’re a vampire.”

“So?” she asked, “I don’t care about that. And don’t tell me it’s because I’m young and I’ll change my mind. I don’t want kids, and even if I did I don’t want kids with anyone else but you. So even if I stayed human, I’ll just be alone for the rest of my short life. How is that better than being with my mate? How is anything better than being with you?”

“You’re so mature for a sixteen year old,” he sighed, defeated.

“Well, I grew up fast,” she whispered.

Carlisle took her face in his hands and wiped the tears off her cheeks before he kissed her forehead.

“I love you too,” he whispered in her ear before he rested his forehead against hers.

She smiled, then moved her hands up his chest onto the back of his neck. They were inches from each other, she could feel his cold breath on her face and he could hear her heart beat fast in her chest. Her fragrance was driving him crazy, more than usual, and he couldn’t resist putting his lips on hers.

The unfamiliar sensation made her entire body shiver. His lips were so cold and hard it should have felt weird, but it didn’t. She kissed him back almost immediately, after a second of surprise. She slid her fingers in his blond hair as he placed his left hand under her thighs and gently made her lay down. His hands were barely touching her, he was being as careful as he could be, he was afraid to hurt her.

She reluctantly broke the kiss to breathe. She felt dizzy, like her heart was about to explode.

“You okay?” she breathed out, she wondered where his hands had gone.

“I’ve never been better,” he nodded. “I’ve been waiting for you for a really long time. I thought waiting two more years would be easy… I was wrong,” he admitted.

“I know you feel bad about turning me…”

“Angie…” he cut her off.

“Hang on, listen to me. I know you think you’re a monster who’s going to Hell. But I also know you’re wrong. You’re too good to end up there. And I don’t want you to be trying to dissuade me to change my mind about this.”

“I can’t make any promises,” he said.

“You know it breaks my heart that you think so low of yourself. You’re a so much better person than most humans.”

“I’m not going to turn you before you’re 18.”

“I know,” she nodded, “and that’s exactly when I want to do it. On my 18th birthday.”

“That’s August of next year.”

“Yes.”

“You haven’t thought about this nearly enough,” he told her.

“Carlisle, what did I just say?”

“What about your father? Your mother? After you’re like me, you won’t be able to see them anymore. We’ll have to leave Forks. You won’t be able to walk in the sun. Promise me you’ll consider every angle.”

“Like you said, I have over a year to make up my mind. But Carlisle, we met three months ago and I already know. Bella already knows too. And I know you do too.”

“It doesn’t matter what I want. Or what I need. Only you matter.”

“I told you never to say that again. You should try and be selfish for once. You deserve to be selfish for a little while.”

“I am already being selfish,” he said. “I’ve never been more selfish than when I decided to stay in Forks with you.”

Angie sighed. “You’re exhausting me.”

Carlisle chuckled. “Sorry. But it’s true.”

“Then keep being selfish. It’ll kill me to lose you.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” he said. “And you really should get some rest.”

“As long as you’re here when I wake up,” she whispered as she settled back into his arms.

“I will be,” he said. “Always.”


	18. Discontinued

Hey guys,

It's been a while, I've been waiting for this writer's block to pass but it's been months and it's getting worse, or at least it's not getting any better. I'm pressing pause on this, but I doubt I'll ever post again, or not anytime soon anyway.

I'm very sorry. I had the idea of a Carlisle x OC last year and I think I've done enough of it.

Thank you so much for your support all this time and I'm so sorry to let you down like this but I can't let you wait. I wanted to wait and see if inspiration would come back but I have to be honest with you and myself, this is the end.

I'm also putting a stop to Dangerous Creatures, if some of you followed that story, I've unpublished it. I will not unpublish this story as I think I've written enough for it to have a beginning and a somewhat decent ending.

I'm very sorry.


End file.
